For this ink fanatic, one tattoo was never enough.
Manchester native Ray Houghton began tattooing his whole body when he was a young man in the army and never really stopped.
Now, the 65-year-old has his entire body covered in tattoos — even his private parts — which cost him about $10,000 over the course of his life.
The Brit told South West News Service that he wanted to get his penis tattooed “for a while,” but his regular artist refused to do it.
But once he found another ink master, Houghton got his nether regions tatted, a process which required wrapping his penis around a rolling pin.
“We used a rolling pin because that was the easiest way for the tattoo to be done,” he explained. “You can’t just do it on a bench or worktop. It was quite weird at first but it made a lot of sense. It worked out perfect really.”
After his four-hour tattoo sitting on Christmas Eve 2018, Houghton said his testicles swelled up to “four times” their normal size.
“I don’t feel the pain anymore but the tattooist couldn’t believe I wanted to get such a sensitive area done,” he recalled. “There was quite a bit of blood and it was uncomfortable to walk the next day.”
The bodybuilder admitted that he gets an enormous amount of messages on social media to see his private area, however, they don’t come from women.
It’s mostly men who gawk at him and ask to see his tatted-up genitals “all the time.”
“It’s always from men — never any women,” he said. “I send it as it’s all over the internet anyway.”
He explained that he decided to cover up eight tattoos he originally received while doing his service in the Royal Artillery.
The initial graphics included a boat, a naked woman, the words “mom” and “dad,” as well as a Geisha.
He noted that he was “desperate” to veil them as well as signs of aging.
“I didn’t like to look in the mirror and see my aging skin. I like to look young. I hated seeing varicose veins and wrinkles. It’s horrible,” he said.
Houghton — who now lives in Spain and owns a gym — also loves to change up his existing art, revealing that he has altered the pictures on his abs so they could match with the rest of his body.
“It was quite weird at first but it made a lot of sense. It worked out perfect really,” he said.
Houghton even loves the amount of attention his ink gets and isn’t shy to talk to fans.
“Everyone loves the designs. When I go walking with my dog people stop me and want autographs, it’s unbelievable,” he joked.
“People want to take pictures of me, too,” he added. “How many people get stopped at my age to ask have a photo with them? Probably not very many.”
Houghton’s bodily talents have also scored him a crown for the North West coast Bodybuilding Champion in 1989.
