Channel 4 has announced a new four-part series which will celebrate Britain's "proud-to be different" homeowners, including one man who has "given up half of his house to a fish tank."
Outrageous Homes, which is scheduled for release next year, will see interior design expert Laurence Llewellyn-Bowen travel the country to meet people who live in wild and wonderful homes, discovering why the owners dare to be different.
The Changing Rooms star, 57 ,will also meet some of the designers and decorators who helped bring the bold visions to life.
Speaking exclusively to The Mirror about some of the best moments from the upcoming show, Laurence said: "I’ve seen some quite unbelievable stuff.
"I think the biscuit at the moment has to go to the gentleman in Nottingham who’s actually given up half of his house to a fish tank.
"Where you would have living room he has a little slice of living room and then an enormous fish tank which he gets in and swims around with his fish."
He added: "We had a chat with him to try and see if there’s some sort of big thing about fish from his childhood or whatever and he goes, ‘No, I just like fish.’
"Great, love it, I absolutely love it! It’s the ultimate in maximalism, when you just fancy something and you do it and that’s it."
Throughout his career, Laurence has been on a mission to inject colour and craziness into homes around the country, and recently returned to our screens for the Changing Rooms reboot.
"It’s great that Changing Rooms has come back, people love it!
"People are watching so energetically because it’s the only programme that says, ‘Yeah, come on let’s have some fun, let’s take a couple of risks, let’s get the neighbours in and see what they want to do.’
"It’s absolutely nothing to do with an estate agent, or your mother-in-law, or Mrs Smith from across the road who always looks disapprovingly, actually all of this is down to you," he said.
The interior designer added: "It is funny because I think people have got this sense of me being exhumed from a remote pyramid somewhere and coming back onto the screen having squeezed myself into my leather trousers."
Not everyone seems to have embraced Laurence's maximalist approach, with some viewers hitting out at his wild designs - though he doesn't seem to mind.
"I just find that sometimes it’s so funny, the things that people say are absolutely outrageous. It's like a comedy.
"Sometimes it’s just plain rude and plain ordinary, but as far as I’m concerned it is wonderful that people are having this strong response to what I’m doing."
He added: "When I look on social media I don’t see haters, I see tough lovers. I see people that know me, that recognise me and have got an opinion on me.
"Okay, they might also be debating how big my bottom is in my leather trousers, but I took the decision to put my leathery bottom on television so yes of course people are going to have an opinion on it."
Laurence, who is often referred to as the king of interior design, has also released a book which seeks to help homeowners when it comes to décor.
He said: "I think people are going to be very surprised by it because more than anything, it’s an anti-design design book."
Throughout the book, More More More, Laurence encourages people to make their own choices when it comes to interior design and urges them to embrace maximalism.
The TV personality said he believes people are starting to reclaim their homes and decorate the space with things they love.
"I think anyone that’s seen my programmes for the last 25 years will tell you, this is what I’ve been doing since the get go.
!I have always wanted to encourage people to do their own thing, I’ve always wanted to help them do their own thing.
"Okay, I wanted to take their thing and maybe take it a little bit further than they would ever take it themselves but that’s actually very much part of the journey as far as I’m concerned."
More More More by Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen is published by DK, 15th September 2022 £20.00
