Oxford journalist Peter Hitchens is among seven celebrities to be banged up inside HMP Shrewsbury to see what life's really like in British prisons in 2023.

The new Channel 4 series sees a raft of famous faces locked up with real-life ex-inmates to experience life behind bars in the overcrowded and understaffed jail.

The Conservative commentator, who has a column in the Mail on Sunday, tweeted a picture of himself bearded and looking dishevelled as he promoted the forthcoming prison reality show.

Friday Night Dinner actor Tom Rosenthal appears in the first episode.

Tom, son of former Oxford Mail journalist Jim Rosenthal,  broke the rules by smuggling in tobacco in his colon.

In what has been described as one of the most shocking things ever to air on TV, he is seen going to the toilet to retrieve the condom filled with tobacco.

The grim footage, which will air in the opening episode of the series, is likely to divide opinion among viewers.

Tom told the Daily Star: “I’ve always wanted to take a poo on television.

"Sorry it’s disgusting. That’s prison!”

He said: “I did my research and I was told that it was good to have tobacco in prison because it’s a form of currency.

"Apparently what I put up my butt could be £200 in the canteen.

"I wanted to go to prison and have something to offer as soon as I crossed through the gates because I knew I couldn’t intimidate these people.”

The series starts on Tuesday (October 31) at 9.15pm on Channel 4.