Helen Gormley

Helen Gormley went missing in 1986 from her home in Dove Close, Towcaster on Thursday 30 October 1986.

She was reported missing at the time but in 2015 a murder enquiry was opened by Humberside Police.

An appeal was made for her to contact her family in the press shortly after she vanished on 6 November 1986, but with no success.

Her maiden name was Helen Rynne and she originated from Ennis in County Clare. She was also known as Ellen Gormley. She had worked at a school in Towcester, and was married with a 6-year-old daughter.

She was described as:

• White.
• 5ft 2in tall.
• Ruddy complexion.
• Blue eyes.
• Mole on the right side of her neck.
• Medium build.
• Fair, shoulder length hair, wearing it in a bob style with a centre parting.
• Possibly wearing a blue anorak with stripes on the arms.
• Wearing blue-tinted glasses.
• Speaks with Irish accent.

However, it was noted that she would have changed over the years.

She was last seen by her husband at 12.30pm on 30 October 1986 when he took their 6-year-old daughter to the cinema in Milton Keynes. When they returned at 5.30pm Helen Gormley was gone.

She had disappeared just a few days before her daughters 7th birthday. She was also expected to have gone to meet her brother in London the following weekend, but never arrived.

She took nothing with her, including clothes or bags, and no money was withdrawn from her bank or building society accounts.

Shortly after her disappearance, some schoolgirls reported seeing her in a public toilet in Buckingham, noting that she asked them about a cafe. The police said:

The owner of the cafe said:

However, further inquiries proved unsuccessful and there have been no sightings of her since.

In 1996, Helen Gormley's daughter appealed for her mother to contact her on her 17th birthday, but with no response.

In 1998 the police reviewed her case, and went back to her home in Dove Close in an effort to take a fresh look at the investigation, however, with no developments.