Giant Taggart tattoo wins Scottish award Taggart fan John Cuthbert, 34, had the face of the late actor Mark McManus and an image of the show's iconic Glasgow skyline inked on his back at last weekend's Scottish Tattoo Convention in Edinburgh. The giant artwork - which is still unfinished and requires another 17 hours' work - depicts the face of actor McManus as Detective Chief Inspector Jim Taggart. It won Cuthbert the top prize for Scottish-themed tattoos at the event. Other tattoos entered in the competition included depictions of the film Braveheart and a Tunnock's caramel wafer. Taggart took the top prize after organisers described it as the "perfect embodiment of a Scottish tattoo." Cuthbert, an IT worker and father of one, is an avid fan of the Glasgow-based police drama, which began its run on STV in 1983. He said the tattoo was inspired by his enthusiasm for the show: "I've loved Taggart ever since it first came out. I own all the box-sets and it's a great show. As reported in the Daily Record, Cuthbert admits his wife took a while to get used to the image: "My wife's fully supportive about my tattoos, but I think she got a bit of a shock at first when she rolled over in the night and saw Mark McManus's face." James Aitken, the event organiser, said: "The category was aimed at finding the best Scottish-themed tattoo and John certainly delivered that." The two-day event at Edinburgh's Corn Exchange saw more than 600 tattoos inked on around 3,000 visitors. McManus played the lead role in Taggart for 11 years until his death in 1994 aged 59.