The horror of the disappearance of a woman from Coventry for 52 years has been put to rest by British police, who have managed to solve one of the country’s longest-running missing persons cases using a very old photograph.

Celia Fox, now 68, was found alive and is in good health. She had gone missing in 1972, when she was 16 years old.

At the time, West Midlands police had reported that Fox was living with her parents and that she might be having an affair with a man. Although the woman disappeared several decades ago, police officers have not ruled out the possibility of her moving away.

On Sunday, the police issued a new appeal to locate her and posted a photo of her from the time of her disappearance on its website and social media.

Within hours of its publication, citizens contacted police, and on Wednesday officers confirmed that Fox is alive and well and living in another part of the country.