I’ve spent £80k tanning & am accused of ‘blackfishing’ but won’t stop – even though mum’s had skin cancer
FINISHING a 15-minute sun-bed top-up, Vicky Quait, 55, gives a sigh of satisfaction.
It’s her final session before her annual trip to the Caribbean, and a crucial component of her pre-holiday prep.
Looking in the mirror, Vicky quickly checks every inch of her body, ensuring it’s the deepest possible shade of mahogany brown, then smiles when the salon receptionist exclaims at the depth of her tan.
“People are always saying that I must be the most tanned woman in Britain,” says Vicky, a nail technician and former bodybuilder from Radlett, Herts.
“They refuse to believe I was born with strawberry blonde hair and pale skin.
“Over the past 39 years, I’ve spent around 2,200 hours under UV lights at tanning salons and more than 5,000 hours sunbathing, as well as using tanning jabs and nasal sprays.
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"It all adds up. In almost 40 years I have spent more than £80,000 perfecting my tan including holidays, tanning beds, nasal sprays and lotions.
So deep is her tan that some people have even assumed she is mixed-race, but Vicky insists she isn’t ‘blackfishing’ - a term used to describe white people who alter their appearance to look as if they have black heritage.
“I’m not trying to look mixed-race,” she says. “When people ask me I always say no I am simply well tanned.
“I’ve a great tan and I love it.”
Vicky, who is single, became addicted to sunbeds and being “super-tanned” in her teenage years.
“In my early teens, I was bullied at school for being overweight, pale and frumpy.
“At 14, I became obsessed with makeup and would slather it on before school to try and look browner - and therefore more acceptable,” she explains.
By 16, Vicky had lost weight and decided to start using sunbeds to ‘fix’ her pale skin.
“I came out after just six minutes under the UV lamp looking red all over - it was the middle of winter, but I felt like I’d been on a tropical holiday,” she says. “I was instantly hooked.
“In the beginning, I’d burn and blister, but over time I built up a tolerance.”
As the years went by, Vicky’s tan addiction showed no signs of abating, and by 2014, she was spending up to 120 minutes a month or 60 hours a year on sunbeds, costing £2,160 a year or more than £21,000 in the past ten years.
"I now use a sun bed with has a 'beauty light' which acts to counteract UV rays in sunbeds and limit any potential damage
That same year, she turned to tanning injections - which mimic a hormone that produces skin-darkening pigments - after reading about them on beauty forums.
“I bought tanning injections online and they cost £80 for one vial,” she says. “Being in the beauty industry I knew the side effects, which can include nausea and allergies.
“I would inject myself daily and have tanning sessions to activate the product. My tan went much darker, but the injections made me feel nauseous all the time. I tried to ignore the symptoms and searched for an alternative.”
Why is tanning dangerous?
Tanning beds are particularly dangerous because they mainly produce UVA radiation which penetrates the skin on a deeper level than UVB (sunlight contains both).
That increases your risk of melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer.
Around six people die of melanoma every day in the UK and according to Cancer Research UK, rates have increased by 32 per cent in the past ten years.
If you've spotted a new mole or lingering mark on your skin, don't be too quick to dismiss it.
It's important to know what your skin looks like normally, to helps you notice any unusual changes.
The ABCDE rule can be followed to assess the health of a mole.
If your mole falls into the following, it’s worth getting checked:
- Asymmetrical – melanomas usually have two very different halves and are an irregular shape
- Border – melanomas usually have a notched or ragged border
- Colours – melanomas will usually be a mix of two or more colours
- Diameter – most melanomas are usually larger than 6mm in diameter
- Enlargement or elevation – a mole that changes size over time is more likely to be a melanoma
Most melanomas don’t give you symptoms like pain or itching.
Meanwhile, some non-cancerous moles or abnormal patches of skin can be itchy.
So having some of these changes on their own doesn't mean you definitely have melanoma, but you should still get it checked out.
There are two main types of skin cancer - non melanoma skin cancer and melanoma skin cancer.
Non-melanoma skin cancer includes:
- Basal cell skin cancer - this is also called basal cell carcinoma
- Squamous cell skin cancer - this is also called squamous cell carcinoma
There are a few different types of melanoma too:
- Superficial spreading melanoma
- Nodular melanoma
- Lentigo maligna melanoma
Find out more about distinguishing moles here.
Then, in 2019, Vicky saw a TikTok ad for nasal tanning sprays, which work in a similar way to the injections. Banned in some countries, in the UK they are unlicensed and unregulated - but that did not deter Vicky, who promptly ordered a bottle for £80 for bottle.
“I started squirting six sprays a day. Coupled with my sunbed sessions, it made my skin go darker than ever, which I was delighted with,” she says.
“It didn't make me feel nauseous like the injections, but I always tell people to read up on the potential side effects the same way you would for any medication.”
Vicky even credits tanning with helping her through the menopause.
"Being tanned makes me feel more positive, I look slimmer, tanned and didn't feel frumpy, fat or less sexy which many women experience during menopause.
"Staying positive and having my tanning dopamine hits in menopause helps you limit symptoms I learnt..
Now, Vicky spends every spare minute over the summer sunbathing in her garden, and has at least three overseas holidays a year - to the likes of Turkey, Spain or the Caribbean - to top up her tan. While there, she spends every hour by the pool or on the beach.
"I use an SPF 30 and lotion after tanning.
"My mum, now 80, had skin cancer removed from her leg and has taught me to always be careful and have moles or spots which change colour checked immediately.
“My friends and I go to Europe for a weekend break or the Caribbean for two or three-week holidays. The sun there is amazing. I love the tropical heat, it's so liberating,” she says.
Told off for 'blackfishing'
“I always ensure I have a great tan before I go. It stops burning and means I can enjoy myself more.”
She also has her long, dyed brown hair styled in tiny plaits every summer to stop it frizzing in the heat and admits that this - along with her deep tan - can sometimes cause confusion about her race.
“The first time it happened was in Turkey, on holiday in 2023. Two Asian men told me I should be ashamed.
"I have blue eyes.
"They couldn't fathom a black woman, even though I am not black, with blue eyes.
"They assumed I was wearing contacts which they felt weren't appropriate for a woman of the race they assumed I was," she says.
“They refused to believe I’m white, until my Caribbean friend managed to convince them.
“It’s bonkers to think I’m black fishing, though - I just happen to like a dark tan and having braids in my hair so it doesn’t go frizzy. That doesn’t mean I’m trying to pretend to be a different race.
Does it even though her MUM had skin cancer
“It’s happened so many times since then, even on Tik Tok.
"I’m used to it. I have a picture of me as a child on my phone, which I show people, and they always end up asking me for tanning tips!”
Vicky isn’t alone in her tan fixation. In Britain, almost one in three people have used a sunbed, with a whopping 43 per cent of Gen Zers - those aged 18-25 - indulging. Nasal tanning sprays, meanwhile, have had more than 99 million views on Tiktok.
All this, despite experts repeatedly warning against sunbeds and sunbathing, and skin cancer rates soaring by a third in the past 10 years.
“I’m not surprised tanning is so popular but the key is to be careful,” says Vicky. “I know the dangers and I get checkups twice a year. It does not mean tanning or sun beds are wrong - you just need to be aware.”
Always wears makeup
Vicky - who always leaves the house with a full face of makeup, even if just going to the gym - admits she does have skin damage from her sun worshipping.
“When I’m not wearing foundation, you can see splotch marks and darkening spots. That is why I have regular checkups.
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“I have cupboards full of moisturisers and slather it at night.
“People say sun tanning ages you, but I feel good about my age and my looks. Sunbeds are my dopamine hit, and I’ll still be using them when I’m in my nineties."
