HOW did the bubbly receptionist from the iconic show Tattoo Fixers become a West End star?
Paisley Billings, 31, appeared in all six seasons of the hit E4 reality show about botched tattoos which ran from 2015 to 2019.
Since then, she swapped the screen for the stage as she took on the London West End starring in Six and the new Percy Jackson musical, The Lightning Thief.
She told the Metro: “I feel like if I’m on a stage, I’m living the dream. I feel like it wasn’t really known that I was always an actor.
“While I was [on Tattoo Fixers] I wasn’t acting at all. I think that’s what may have caused a little bit of confusion. I was a receptionist on TV, but I’ll be honest, I don’t know much about receptioning.”
But Paisley is no stranger to theatre as she appeared as young Nala in The Lion King when she was around 10 years old.
She is also a trained dancer, following extensive lessons in street and contemporary.
Despite now living her dream, Paisley admitted that Tattoo Fixers ending was very “bittersweet”.
She revealed: “I’d been doing it for such a long time and I really missed performing but it was also really, really sad to leave it behind.
“Obviously, Sketch and I being in it from the very beginning, we were pretty much like family by the end of it.
“So that was difficult, saying goodbye to the people, but I think it came at a time where I was ready for something new.”
Paisley also appeared on series one of Celebs Go Dating back in 2017.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”Celebs Go Dating star splits from boyfriend they met on the show” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6362717636112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]She joined celebrities including Charlotte Crosby and Joey Essex on a popular E4 show.
The self-confessed “dating virgin” did manage to bag some dates, but fans were left in tears when she was dumped on the show.
[authenticated-scripts src=”%3Cscript%20class%3D%22palin-poll%22%20src%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thesun.co.uk%2Fpollingwidgets%2Fv3%2Fwidget.js%3Fquestion_id%3D105226%26game%3Dpolling%22%3E%3C%2Fscript%3E” type=”embedded” width=”100″ /]After falling for handsome Corey, she couldn’t hold back tears when she was told that he didn’t want to have a second date with her.
Speaking about her dates in the future, Paisley told The Sun online that she definitely didn’t want anyone with a “s*** tattoo”.
Paisley can be now be seen in theatre show The Lightning Thief where she plays seven different characters.
It runs at The Other Palace in London and has been extended until August.
However, she hasn’t said goodbye to TV completely as she said: “If there’s a world in which there could be a musical comedy, or talk show vibes that would be quite fun.”
She teased: “Maybe a documentary here and there.”
