I thought I recognised the comet photo in the Mirror article – it is Comet West 1975 VI from 1976 – see the following link
https://enacademic.com/pictures/enwiki/67/C_1975_V1_%28West%29_1976-03-09_6h_UTC.jpg
I was new to astronomy back then but heard about this comet but failed to see it in the pre-dawn sky – I then joined ‘The Astronomer’ to make sure I didn’t miss any other bright comets!