AS fryers warm up to herald the start of National Chip Week, Worcestershire residents are being warned that their passion for fast food is blocking more than their arteries.

Last year drains experts Dyno-Rod unclogged almost 3,000 drains across the county and they cite cooking fats and oils as one of the biggest culprits of blockages.

"Around two thirds of us eat fish and chips at least once a month," said Andrew Sanderson from Dyno-Rod.

"As a nation, we devour around 1.4 million tonnes of chips each year. However, when cooking fats or oils are poured down the sink they solidify and are the primary reason for blockages."

But fats and oil are by no means the only perpetrators. The company has revealed the top ten bizarre items dislodged by their engineers called out over the last year to unblock household drains:

1. Enough clothes to fill a suitcase - flushed down the toilet after a domestic row

2. Johnny Hates Jazz cassette

3. An Action Man doll

4. Fishing rod

5. Set of false teeth - which were later cleaned and re-used by the gentleman who had lost them.

6. Half an uncooked chicken

7. Broken tennis racquet

8. A dead hamster

9. Mobile phone

10. A bra

With National Chip Week beginning yesterday, Dyno-Rod is urging people to think twice about how they get rid of cooking waste.

The best way to dispose of grease and cooking oil is to allow it to cool then scrape or pour it out into newspaper or an old cardboard box and put it in the bin.

If readers must pour small amounts of oil or fats away, mix it with plenty of boiling water and detergent.