A teenager has had the words ‘shalom Jackie’ burned into her arm after getting a black henna tattoo while on holiday in Zante.

Beth Fitzsimmons, 18, was with a group of around 50 people on holiday in Greece and they amused themselves by shouting the phrase from Friday Night Dinner repeatedly.

They decided to get the tattoos done by a random family they met on the street. She’s now been told it may take six months for the scarring to go down.

Beth Simmons had ‘Shalom Jackie’ written on her arm in black henna – she’s now got the scar for six months (Picture: Mercury)

Beth said that she has had a job interview and had to cover it up (Picture: Mercury)

Beth, from Southwell, Nottinghamshire, said: ‘It was one of those phrases that people were just shouting.


‘My friends and I thought it was really funny so on the third night of the holiday after going out we decided to get it done.



‘We were on a night out but I don’t really drink so I was sober when I did it. It was done by a random family in the street. The mum and dad were doing them.

‘We woke up the next day and thought it was hilarious. We sent pictures to our parents and and they were like ‘that better not be permanent’.

‘It was absolutely fine until about eight days later then it was so itchy and it felt like it was burning.

Eight girls in the group of 50 who went to Zente together got the phrase tattooed on their arm (Picture: Mercury)

‘It was so red. It was all raised up. Now it looks a bit like eczema and is very dry. I went to the pharmacy about a week after I got back home and they didn’t have a clue.

‘That was on a Thursday and they said if it was still there on Sunday go to the walk-in centre. I thought that was a bit extreme so I went to the doctor on the Monday.

Toothbrush removed from man's stomach after he swallowed it while brushing

‘I said to them that I was probably overreacting but I needed to know if it was going to scar permanently because when I looked it up it said you needed to be treated for chemical burns. I was so worried it would scar me forever.’

The para-phenylenediamine chemical in black henna is also used in hair dyes and not in brown or other coloured henna.

It can cause blistering of the skin, painful burns and can lead to scarring as well as leaving someone with a lifelong sensitivity to it which increases the risk of severe allergic reaction when using hair dyes in the future.

They got the tattoos done by a random family they met at the roadside in Zante (Picture: Mercury)

When she returned to the pharmacist to collect her prescription, Beth was warned that because of the chemical she would no longer be able to dye her hair.

Beth said: ‘The doctors told me I’d had an allergic reaction to it and it would take about six months to go completely. I was prescribed steroid cream which I used for 10 days.

Security guard filmed 'trying to strangle colleague' at train station

‘The pharmacist told me one of the chemicals in black henna is also in hair dye so I would no longer be able to dye my hair.

‘She was very firm on it because she said my body would start attacking what’s in the hair dye and that I could actually die. That was the worst thing for me – not being able to dye my hair.



‘I never had a black henna tattoo before and had no idea that they could do this. I thought it was the same as brown henna. It’s come off everybody else apart from me.

The scarring should go away after around six months (Picture: Mercury)

‘I’ve found it quite frustrating and upsetting but I’ve tried to keep it quite light-hearted. I can make a joke about it and it’s better to laugh than cry. I’ve had job interviews so it’s a case of covering it up.’

Beth admitted it was a real laugh at the time because everyone was shouting the phrase made popular by the character Jim in the Channel Four comedy about adult two brothers who return home for dinner with their parents every Friday night.

What is the Ig Nobel Prize and who won it this year?

Beth, who is taking a gap year after completing her A-Levels earlier this year, said: ‘I love the show – it’s hilarious.

‘Friday Night Dinner seems to be the thing that young people are obsessed with at the moment. It was everywhere in Zante. People would shout different lines back at each other.

‘It wasn’t a random choice – it was crucial to our trip. It was so funny.

‘I think saying I regret it would be wrong because it was a real laugh at the time. I do regret that I can’t dye my hair again – that’s painful to accept.’

Beth warned about the dangers of black henna and would advise people against getting one done.

Beth said: ‘I would 100 per cent say do not get black henna. If I would have known before I wouldn’t have done it. It was a case of blind ignorance.


‘It has raised awareness though because people are now saying they won’t get black henna done because of what happened to me which is a good thing.’

Got a story for Metro.co.uk? If you have a story for our news team, email us at webnews@metro.co.uk. You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter.