Latest news with #KingOfInkLand
The Sun
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Britain's most tattooed man who's spent £40k transforming his entire body reveals how he looked before getting inked
BRITAIN'S most tattooed man has revealed what he looked like before covering every inch of his body in ink and fans can't believe it's the same person. Mathew Whelan, 45, from Birmingham, who legally changed his name to King of Ink Land King Body Art The Extreme Ink-ite, has spent a whopping £40,000 and more than 1,600 hours under the needle. 4 4 Now covered head to toe in black and grey body art, from his shaved scalp to the soles of his feet, and even his eyeballs, resurfaced photos show just how much he's changed. Snaps from when he was just 16 and 18 show the now-inked-up icon with a fresh face, buzz cut, and smooth skin. In one shot, a young Mathew poses proudly with his very first tattoo which was a bulldog on his arm. Fast forward nearly three decades and he's had his eyes permanently dyed black, nipples removed, ears reshaped, and almost no visible skin untouched by ink. The transformation began when he was just nine years old after developing a fascination with tattoos and body mods and over the years, he's pushed it to the extreme. He even holds a world record for the most tattoo artists working on him at once, after 36 tattooists inked him simultaneously at a Derby expo in 2016. But going full body art hasn't come without complications. His tattoos have caused him physical damage. He told The Sun Online that the knuckle duster implant has done nerve damage but he hopes his arm can be saved - although this is undetermined until surgeons operate. This week, King of Ink Land revealed he's been locked out of adult websites because facial recognition software can't recognise his face, mistaking it for a mask due to the heavy ink. He believes it's another example of being unfairly treated based on how he looks and said his face is as much a part of his identity as his name. He told the Metro: 'It's as important as the name really and I changed my name legally. 'Without a name you haven't got an identity, and it's the same with a face. It's my skin, my permanent identity.' King of Ink got his first tatt when he was 16 and has since splashed £40,000 on body modifications. He told how he had his nipples cut off to make room for more inkings and keeps them in his freezer 'next to his sprouts'. He's also admitted that day-to-day life can be tough. In 2015 he admitted his unusual looks were making it hard for him to find a job. He has since called for an end to discrimination towards people with body modifications, claiming he has been the victim of a 'hate crime' due to his extraordinary appearance. People avoid sitting next to him on buses, he gets stared at constantly, and strangers often try to sneak photos, which can sometimes lead to confrontation. Mathew previously shared how his boss hid him because he hated his tattoos. But despite the challenges, he says it's a lifestyle he chose and loves, even if it has to take a back seat for now. The tattoo lover has recently announced he's pausing his inking habit to focus on paying off his £66,000 mortgage, saying he's putting his tattoo journey 'on hold' while he clears his debts. He still plans to get the odd tattoo every couple of years, but says it's time to be sensible, even if it means scaling back the extreme ink. He also revealed plans to remove some of his past body mods, including a hand implant, saying that although his transformation is a huge part of his identity, he's always evolving. 4 4
Daily Mail
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Britain's most tattooed man who spent £40,000 on inking himself reveals what he looked like before
Britain's most tattooed man who spent £40,000 on inking himself, has revealed what he looked like before. Mathew Whelan, 45, from Birmingham, changed his name to King Of Ink Land King Body Art The Extreme Ink-ite, in 2008. The body art enthusiast, who goes by King of Ink Land for short, claims that he's spent more than 1,600 hours under the needle and set the record in February 2016 when he had 36 tattooists work on him at once. Since his interest in body modifications sparked at aged nine, he's had his eyes stained black, his nipples removed, his ears shaped and his whole body covered in tattoos. But long before the bold black-and-grey artwork took over his face, torso, arms and even his eyes, King of Ink Land was just an ordinary young man. Now resurfaced snaps show his remarkable journey from fresh-faced Brummie to full-blown inked out King of Ink Land. An 18-year-old King of Ink Land is barely recognisable in the snaps, sporting a clean-shaven face, clear skin and a tight buzz cut. In another snap, showing off his very first tattoo of a bulldog at 16-years-old, he can be seen posing at the side of his bed. However it wasn't long before he started inking his face, as a picture just a few years later shows a slew of small tattoos across his visage. The resurfaced snaps come just days after King Of Ink Land revealed facial recognition technology used by adult websites in the UK is failing to recognise his heavily tattooed face. The new rules came into force last week, introducing stricter checks under Ofcom's children's codes. Now the technology is mistaking his face for a mask and locking him out of live webcam chats. The entrepreneur believes he is facing discrimination based on his permanent, tattooed appearance. Speaking to Metro, he said: 'It's as important as the name really and I changed my name legally. 'Without a name you haven't got an identity, and it's the same with a face. It's my skin, my permanent identity.' However the issues with is heavily tattooed face doesn't stop there, the 45-year-old previously admitted it can cause challenges in everyday life. He's often avoided on public transport in Birmingham, with people choosing to stand rather than sit beside him. He also frequently catches strangers secretly taking photos of him in public, which sometimes leads to confrontation. The 45-year-old has previously spoken about giving up getting inked to clear his £66,000 mortgage. 'Getting tattoos can be an addiction, however, this is a lifestyle for me, which I can start and pause whenever I please,' King Of Ink Land, said. 'I'm taking a break from being inked while I concentrate on clearing my mortgage, so I'll be slowing down over the next few years.' The ink fiend says he may still get tattoos 'every other year' but has a budgeting plan in place. 'This means I'll have to limit my lifestyle,' he said. 'But I'll be happy to have that out of the way and done.' 'They [the tattoos] are part of my journey, and I will go on to evolve more at some point in the future – just not anytime soon.' As well as placing the tattoo needle to one side, he will also remove some of his modifications, including an implant in his hand.
Gizmodo
01-08-2025
- Gizmodo
Britain's Most Tattooed Man Says Age-Verification Law Preventing Him From Watching Porn
The United Kingdom's age verification law, which went into effect last month and requires sites that host adult content to ensure their users are not underage, has claimed an unintended victim: Britain's most tattooed man. According to a report from Metro, the man who has 90% of his body covered in tattoos can't get sites that require verification via selfie to recognize him. King Of Ink Land King Body Art The Extreme Ink-Ite (yes, that's his full name) said platforms that require photo verification to confirm his identity have been befuddled by his face tats. 'It's saying 'remove your mask' because the technology is made so you can't hold up a picture to the camera or wear a mask,' he told Metro. 'It's not like you can do the old John Travolta in Face/Off and change it when you want to. It's my skin, my permanent identity.' First, that's not what happens in Face/Off. John Travolta can't just swap faces any time he wants. He undergoes an experimental face transplant procedure to take on the appearance of notorious terrorist for hire Castor Troy to obtain information about a bomb planted in Los Angeles, only to have Troy attempt to destroy his face to prevent him from ever being able to take back his true look. But King Of Ink does accurately raise a real problem with the UK's verification system. Facial recognition technology contains biases in how it processes people. Studies have found that facial recognition systems often have higher error rates for people of color, including one landmark MIT study that found the error rate for light-skinned men was 0.8%, compared to 34.7% for darker-skinned women. Researchers have also found that human biases when guessing a person's age are exacerbated by automated systems, leading to potentially inaccurate results. So even if someone isn't covered in tattoos, there is a decent chance that age verification systems will misidentify them. The implementation of the UK's regulations has left a lot to be desired, and not just for the King Of Ink. The age-gating initiative has thus far been thwarted in several ways, with users opting to browse with a VPN to avoid verification requirements as well as using 'photo mode' in the video game Death Stranding to present a realistic-looking face that appears old enough to get approved by the checkers. Unfortunately for those who haven't thwarted the age restriction, it's more than just pornography that is being restricted in the UK. Reports indicate that content about everything from the ongoing genocide in Gaza to political debates has been locked behind an age gate.
