This paper deals with an experimental and numerical study of the dynamics of an underwater explosion and its associated fluid–structure interaction. Experimental studies of the complex fluid–structure interaction phenomena were carried out in a specially designed test pond. The pond is equipped with a high-speed camera and pressure and displacement sensors. The high-speed camera was used to capture the expansion and collapse of the gas bubble created by the explosion. Several different structures were used in the experiments, including both rigid and resilient plates of circular shape. The deformation of the plate was measured with a non-contact laser telemetry device. The numerical simulations of the explosion bubble interacting with a submerged resilient structure were performed using a three-dimensional bubble dynamics code in conjunction with a structural code. The bubble code is based on the boundary-element method (BEM) and has been coupled to a structural finite-element code (PAM-CRASH$^{\rm TM})$. The experimental results were compared against the numerical results for different bubble–structure configurations and orientations. Several physical phenomena that have been observed, such as bubble jetting and bubble migration towards the structure are discussed.