THE glamorous life of being crowned Miss Great Britain failed to pay off for a NorthEast beauty queen who reportedly picked up only £1,300 during her reign.

Nicki Lane, 26, from Middlesbrough, would have been better off stacking shelves at Woolworths, where she worked before she was given the title last year.

Ms Lane was so hard up she could not afford the Christmas she had wished for her son.

In a Sunday newspaper, she reportedly said: "Last year I could not properly provide presents for my son at Christmas.

"That was difficult to deal with, given I was supposedly Miss Great Britain.

"I had managed perfectly adequately in previous years while holding positions of Christmas helper at Woolworths and university student.

She also won the crown in 1999, but was stripped of the award after it was discovered she had lied about having a son at the age of 14.

Organisers of last year's show said they were unable to use Nicki more because she had appeared in an unauthorised photoshoot during her reign.

Spokesman Cris Guina said: "We regret that Nicki was unable to fully realise the opportunity afforded by winning the 2003 competition due to her past photographic work, and has now opportunistically chosen this time to make her disappointment known."