PURPOSE: To eliminate the re-sticking of the foreign matter such as a hickey, which is removed from a plate cylinder, to the plate cylinder by separately mounting a foreign matter removing roller rotating around the plate cylinder with a peripheral speed slightly different from that of the plate cylinder and automatically wasting the peripheral surface thereof.

CONSTITUTION: A foreign matter removing roller 5 is brought into contact with a plate cylinder 1 and the peripheral speed thereof is made slightly slower than that of the plate cylinder 1 while a washing solution is supplied to washing cloth 10 from a washing solution supply apparatus 12 and this supply place is opposed to the foreign matter removing roller 5 by intermittently rotating a take-up roller 7. Subsequently, the supply place in this opposed state is pressed to the foreign matter removing roller 5 intermittently by the advance and retraction of a pusher 11. The supply of the washing solution, the rotation of the take-up roller 7 and the advance/retraction of the pusher 11 are repeated several times to automatically wash the peripheral surface of the foreign matter removing roller 5 and, thereafter, a mount plate 4 is separated from the plate cylinder 1 to complete one process for removing foreign matter such as a hickey.