WITH a 14-foot crocodile taking pride of place in the living room, and tarantulas and snakes in the garage, Atherton is home to an extraordinary house.

The home of Joe McQuade, known as 'Crocodile Joe', his mum Pauline McQuade, and his partner, RSPCA Inspector Melissa Furey, had a starring role on ITV1’s 'May The Best House Win'.

They invited three strangers into their unusual home in The Close, Atherton, for the show, in which the contestants secretly score each other’s properties out of 10 in a bid to win £1,000.

Mr McQuade, aged 41, who is allergic to furry animals, rescues reptiles and looks after them in his garage.

He currently has more than 70 creatures and goes to schools to talk to youngsters about animals.

While working in Australia, he experienced first-hand the devastation caused by people not looking after their environment when a rescued 14-foot saltwater crocodile died and an autopsy revealed its stomach was full of plastic bags.

Mr McQuade named it Spartacus, had it preserved — and brought it home.

He said: “The guests were absolutely wowed when they came in and saw the jungle room because from the outside, the house looks absolutely normal — and when they came into the front room and saw Spartacus they were amazed.”

One of the contestants said: “It is a very interesting house. I have never seen anything like it before and I do not think I will ever see anything like it again.”

The contestants were treated to an animal-themed lunch, including green slime for drinks.

But it was not enough to win the competition.

The house scored 20 out of 30, which placed it joint last.