THE world’s most tattooed senior woman, who claims getting tattoos is “just like a drug”, has decided to kick the habit for good.

Isobel Varley, of Tudor Close in Stevenage, is almost entirely covered in brightly coloured tattoos.

The only parts of her body which remain untouched are the soles of her feet, the palm of her right hand, and parts of her face.

The 73-year-old Guinness World Record holder sees herself as a living work of art, with her head the latest part of her body to be inked.

“I got my head tattooed about a year ago,” she said. “It was so painful because the skin on the head is thinner than elsewhere.

“The whole head was done in about four sessions, and I have to shave it now.

“Some of the illustrations are a bit rude, and some are flowers - All sorts of things really. I just let the tattooist get on with it.”

Mrs Varley’s obsession with body art began when she had two tattoos in 1986. “I’ve just been going ever since,” she said. “It’s just like a drug.”

But, aside from having some of her existing tattoos re-coloured, she is putting an end to her colourful habit.

“I am finished,” she said. “I haven’t got any more room for tattoos. The soles of my feet can’t be done because they rejected the ink, and if I do all over my face you won’t be able to tell who I am.”