When it comes to tattooing institutions, none are as well-known and have as much history as the Bristol Tattoo Club.

The Bristol Tattoo Club, or BTC for short, was the brainchild of the Champion Tattoo Artist of All Great Britain, the legendary Les Skuse.

Les had the original idea for the BTC back in 1951, but it wasn’t until 1953 that the Club was formally started.

The BTC had one main purpose: to heighten the awareness of the good in tattooing and attempt to get away from the misconception that only ‘bad people’ or those in the armed forces had tattoos.

And so, the Bristol Tattoo Club was born, holding its first ever tattoo convention at the White Horse public house in Bristol, before moving to a larger establishment in the years to come.

After many years of successful conventions in Bristol, Les Skuse took the Bristol Tattoo Club across the pond to America, where it had many famous tattoo artist fans like Sailor Jerry Collins and Tattoo Jack.

Les ran the BTC until his death in 1973, when his son Danny (Les Skuse Jr) took over the Presidency. After a more subdued operation, Danny handed the reins over to the latest President, Jimmie Skuse, who began to transform the Bristol Tattoo Club back to its glory days.

The Bristol Tattoo Club is not just about conventions, however. To this day, the Club manufacturers quality old school coil tattoo machines – many of which can be ordered via the Killer Ink Tattoo website.

We also stock a reference book that is a tribute to the old school flash designs of Les Skuse, as well as a book chronicling the history and art of legendary tattoo artist Joseph Hartley, compiled by BTC President Jimmie Skuse.

If you’re interested in joining the Bristol Tattoo Club, you can find out more information by visiting their website www.bristoltattooclub.co.uk.