THEY swapped a luxurious home in Malvern for a derelict house in Cornwall to adopt a greener lifestyle - and now the Strawbridge's exploits are set to hit the small screen.

Since spending their life savings to up-sticks from West Malvern Road last June, the family has turned the 300-year-old property into an energy efficient home run almost completely on renewable energy.

When they first moved into the six-bedroom property - which is set on three acres of land - they had no electricity, water, toilets or heating.

But the green family soon set about converting the run-down home into a place even the most environmentally friendly of people would be proud of.

Inventor dad Richard built contraptions including an aqueduct and waterwheel to utilise wind, solar and water power for heating and to produce electricity. One of the more bizarre touches is the outdoor compost toilet which they came up with to turn human waste into fertiliser.

Now their grand adventure is set to be feature on a new eight-part television series - It's Not Easy Being Green - which begins tonight on BBC2.

Mr Strawbridge is no stranger to television, having previously appeared on the shows Scrapheap Challenge - where he initially found fame.

It's Not Easy Being Green can be seen tonight at 8pm on BBC2.

The former Lieutenant Colonel also turned his hand to reconstructing some of the weird and wonderful military inventions used in combat for the show Crafty Tricks of War, aired on BBC2 during 2004.

In the star's latest programme, viewers will also show his, wife Brigit and their children - 21-year-old James and 19-year-old Charlotte's attempts to be as self-sufficient as possible.

The family grow their own produce and keep animals and recycle as much as possible, with Richard even designing a green diesel-maker to convert old chip fat into biofuel.

And it seems all their hard work is paying off, as the family has found that their new way of life is not only saving the planet but their pennies too.

It's Not Easy Being Green can be seen tonight at 8pm on BBC2.