CROSS-EYED grimaces, protruding tongues, not to mention false teeth, were the order of the day when a pub held its first gurning competition at the weekend.

And it was Beryl Burn, of Chester-le-Street, putting on a face that would petrify small children, who was crowned the first woman champion.

The competition, at the Strathmore Arms, at Holwick, in Teesdale, was the idea of landlady, Helen Osborne.

She said: "We wanted to do something to revive some of the old country pub traditions and pastimes." Beryl will have the chance to defend her title when the pub stages the event again next year.