The photograph of a woman blackleading a grate brought back memories for Geoff Sandford.

He wrote: “We lived with my grandparents in Spray Street until 1953 and she had a large grate there which was removed in 1963.

"Tuesdays was blackleading day in the household and she or my mum got a tin of blacklead (Zebra grate polish,similar to Brasso but black, and it also came as a paste in packets) and a cloth and rubbed all the grate, the side oven and shelving each side of the fire.

“It was a messy, dirty job. Once applied it was polished up and looked a treat for a while.The oven next to it was used at times when we had family get togethers there.

"Food would be done in the gas oven then placed in the oven by the fire to remain hot. My gran would also warm irons of various weights in the oven for ironing clothes.

“Those fireplaces were large and the fires were hot. Unlike today you could burn your rubbish on them including peelings from potatoes/cabbages/apples and any manner of things. No such thing then as sorting rubbish you did not need to, and few foods were packed like today. The blacking soon tarnished from that lot!

“Another ritual was donkey stoning the step on Thursdays to make them white. That’s another forgotten chore these days which many women did until well after the Second World War.”