Tom Wells of The Sun October 24, 2007 02:30pm

PROUD Paul Croft got a tattoo of Harry Potter wizard Albus Dumbledore on his back but is now being teased by pals after he was outed as gay.

Proud Paul, 36, spent a year having the Hogwarts headmaster etched into his skin as a surprise for his five kids. But the factory worker has been the butt of jokes ever since Harry Potter author JK Rowling revealed last week that Dumbledore was in love with a fellow male sorcerer.

Paul, of Nottingham, moaned yesterday: "It's been terrible. I've always liked Dumbledore - just not in that way.

"I went into work and everyone was sniggering.

"When I walked in, one of the lads said, 'Oi, Paul heard about Dumbledore?' "There were wisecracks about 'Watch your backs, lads'. Someone asked me if I was planning to get a tattoo of Graham Norton. I thought, Why me?"

The huge $1200 tattoo shows Dumbledore holding a scroll bearing the names of his Harry Potter-mad children Charlotte, Deanna, Brandon, Tamzin and Paris.

Paul said: "It seemed like a good idea at the time. The whole thing took nearly a year. I was really pleased with the result."

The tattoo is about 2ft in length and shows Dumbledore played by Richard Harris who was the original and best.

He insisted: "I don't regret it and Im not going to get rid of it."