According to a recent Channel 4 documentary, the UK is now the most tattooed nation in Europe. But what if anything do tattoos mean? Native American tribes continue to use them as a means of social recognition, while for criminals in Honduras they represent gang affiliation, and some Maori groups in New Zealand use them as an expression of both. But it sometimes seems the proliferation of tattoos here in Britain has led to them becoming devoid of meaning altogether.

Despite their preponderance, we do still have an ambiguous relationship with tattoos. On the one hand the Metropolitan Police recently announced it will ban bobbies from sporting them in public, and tabloid eyebrows were raised at ladies revealing their tattoos at Ascot, but on the other, we’re fascinated by SamCam’s inky ankle. From this voyeuristic relationship comes a number of probing questions; can tattoos ever be art or are they merely a form of self abuse? Should public servants be asked to cover them up? And does having a tattoo still imply anything countercultural? Or is it now more mainstream than not having one?