WINNERS of a contest to come up with old fashioned cleaning remedies swept the board at a prize presentation yesterday.

Actor Mike Burns, who is playing Widow Twankee in Aladdin, at Middlesbrough Theatre, presented awards to the winners of the Grandma's Hints competition.

Entrants in the contest, which was run by the Healthy Homes project earlier this year, were asked to come up with old-time hints for cleaning the house.

The winning entries were:

* Grease may be removed from clothes by pressing the garment with a cool iron and brown paper.

* One of the best ways to get rid of "nasty niffs" is to burn a match or candle.

* When boiling milk, rinse the pan with cold water before you put milk in. This will stop the milk from burning and make washing up easier.

* If chewing gum gets stuck on clothing, place the item in the freezer for 15 minutes and it will come off more easily.

A book containing the best of the competition entries will be published by Middlesbrough Borough Council in spring.