Peaky Blinders superfan spends £6,000 on tattoos devoted to the BBC show
David Hatfield as as spent 125 hours under the needle having the main characters from the Birmingham-inspired drama drawn on his body
A Peaky Blinders superfan has forked out £6,000 covering his entire back and arms in huge tattoos devoted to the hit Birmingham-inspired BBC series.
David Hatfield, 58, has spent 125 hours under the needle getting the eye-catching artwork which features most of the main characters from the iconic crime drama.
The council worker had his first Peaky Blinders tattoo in July 2016 with the aim of covering up an old inking he had done when he was young.
He started with a portrait of main protagonist Thomas Shelby, played by Cillian Murphy, before adding more characters across his entire back.
He has since forked out several thousands pounds more covering both of his arms in images of mafia man Luca Changretta and Tommy’s brother Arthur Shelby.
And David says he isn’t finished yet as he plans to add a tribute to Helen McCrory who played Aunt Polly after she died of breast cancer last year.
David’s incredible artwork has been carried out by tattooist Martin Thornton at Ink Envy in Birmingham.
What has David said about his Peaky Blinder tattoos in his own words?
David, of Halesowen, said: “I’m a massive fan of the show and the characters are really wonderfully portrayed.
“I was going to have The Great Escape on my back as it came out in 1963 when I was born, but I chose Peaky Blinders instead as I just fell in love with it.
“My back took 64 hours and 11 sittings to complete because a lot of them are cover ups of rubbish old tattoos I had when I was younger
“I was in the chair for seven hours for the first tattoo, and it’s £350 a sitting. It’s roughly £6,000 altogether so I’ve spent a fair bit on them.
“I did it because I thought it was an original idea. I must have been the only one at the time.
"I’ve seen a couple more full back pieces now but I think I’m the only one with a full back and arms.
“I was speaking to Packy Lee, who plays Johnny Dogs, on Facebook and we were going to meet before Covid, but he is a busy man.
“I’m keeping my left arm mainly free for a tribute to Helen McCrory. I’ve always intended to get her as it was terribly sad when she died.
"She was an integral part of the show and a wonderful actress."
But did it hurt?
Despite having spent thousands of pounds on tattoos, David says he is still not used to the pain that comes from the dedication to his Peaky Blinders body art.
He added: “You never get used to the pain of the tattoo. Some of them can be a breeze but other times you can lie there in agony.
“The worst pain I had was my inner bicep and my lower back.
“I should’ve learnt my lesson by now and I said I’d stop when I did my back.
“But I will definitely finish it, with Aberama Gold and Polly to finalise both sleeves.
“I’m thinking of having a noose in a space, around my elbow, connecting to the tat of Arthur as he tried to kill himself.
“I’ll have the ribs done next. I might have the back connecting to the ribs so it’s just one big piece. Once you get the bug you just keep on going.
"It’s going to be sad when the series ends because it has just been superb from start to finish.
"I reckon it’s going to end with Michael and Tommy fighting, maybe Tommy dies as Michael blames him for his mum’s death.
"I think the grey man Tommy’s daughter kept talking about that was coming to get her is Michael Gray.
"I’ll definitely miss it when its no longer on but I really look forward to the film coming out."
The final season of Peaky Blinders is currently airing in the UK on the BBC every Sunday at 9pm.
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