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A Miley Cyrus mega-fan is getting his tattoos of the pop star removed, claiming they have "stopped him from getting a girlfriend".

Carl McCoid, 43, has 29 Miley-inspired tattoos but has now enlisted the help of a Hull tattoo artist to cover them up after they left him "feeling trapped" and unable to find love.

The Bridlington man got his first tattoo in 2010 and has since covered his body in portraits, song lyrics and initials of the pop star he was once "obsessed" with. He said: "People can't seem to see past the tattoos and it was having a very negative effect on my life where I felt trapped by them. I've just gone off her."

Miley said in an interview last year that Carl's tattoos were "ugly" and "creepy", but Carl, a dad-of-three, insists her comments are not the main reason he wants to get them removed.

He has spent £2,700 on the tattoos, which he says seem to be the only talking point when he goes on dates. He said: "The conversation just seems to be centred around them and it just gets boring. I feel like I can't move on."

He also says he does not like the star any more because of her provocative behaviour. He said: "She's doing silly things and I don't want to be associated with the things that she does. She used to be the girl next door but she's losing a lot of fans."

Carl began laser treatment on some of the tattoos last year. Now, to speed up the process, he has started covering them up.

Carl, who runs his own ironing business from home, realised his obsession had gone too far when he stood in front of the mirror and was shocked by the sight of his Miley-covered torso.

Carl said: "I thought 'oh my God, this has gone too far'. When I look back, it was just an obsession that got out of control.

"It had a physiological effect where I just didn't feel right, I felt trapped and I just wanted to take the tattoos off. It was awful."

Two weeks ago, Carl began laser treatment on his largest Miley tattoo, a picture of her face on his torso.

He said: "That really hurt. It was ten times worse than getting them, but I'm not bothered how much pain I have to go through. I feel set free and it feels great to be getting rid of them."

Carl has been working seven days a week to fund his tattoo removal and says that he does not care how much it costs to get rid of them.