A MAN is counting the cost after spending £2,000 ridding himself of tattoos.

Les Elliot has spent two years in pain having more than 15 tattoos removed by laser surgery - because his appearance meant he could not get a job.

Mr Elliott, 37, was left with more than 200 blisters on his hands as he endured two years of the surgery.

Lasers burn off the tattoo - and a layer of skin - during the operation.

Mr Elliott, from Winlaton, Tyne and Wear, got his first tattoo in 1983, at the age of 17.

A butterfly and spider's web were tattooed on his hands, two swallows and eyes on the front and back of his neck, and even a star on his face.

He said: "I had my tattoos done originally because everyone else had them."

But after years of being discriminated against because of his appearance, he took the decision to pay for the laser treatment.

He explained: "I did not get jobs and have been thrown out of nightclubs just because of my tattoos"

Mr Elliott, a factory worker at Tyneside Safety Glass, had to fork out a big part of his salary to get the removal treatment.

He said: "I went through unbearable pain for a long time.

"Because of the blisters that come up after treatment, you have to wait weeks until you can be lasered again and each tattoo needs a few goes."