40 PER CENT RISE IN DEMAND FOR PENIS ENLARGEMENT IN UK

The elaborate tattoo emblazoned across Tom 'Billy' O' Connor's muscular shoulder bears the legend: 'Hung Like A Stallion'.

But while O'Connor, a 34-year-old former porn star from Colchester, might have a manhood worth bragging about now, that wasn't always the case.

Instead he is one of an increasing number of British men opting to go under the knife to enhance their manhood - an operation now so popular, demand has jumped 40 per cent in just one year, according to a leading surgeon.

'But believe me, large numbers of men reading this will not be laughing – even visiting the gym can cause heartache [for them].'

Dr Viel, who says demand for the procedure has shot up by more than 40 per cent in the last year, isn't the only surgeon to find himself bombarded with applications from men desperate to give their manhood a boost.

Dr Alessandro Littara, a Milan-based surgeon, claimed last year that demand for penis extension surgery among Italian men was shooting up by a record 25 per cent annually, and pinned the blame on the flood of sexualised images that crop up on everything from TV to billboards.

 'With everyone seeing images of the body the whole time these days, men are more aware and worried about their bodies,' he told MailOnline.

'All the parts are important and the genitals are no exception. We're living in the age of images, with sexual ones very often on the front page. Sex gets more attention and people feel the need to be more competitive.'

Dr Viel, whose clinic, the London Centre For Aesthetic Surgery, is based on Harley Street, agrees. 

'Male models, notably David Gandy in the D&G adverts, David Beckham for H&M and model Jamie Dornan for Calvin Klein, posing on buses and billboards in tight pants that leave little to the imagination drive the trend,' he explains.

'The demand for these operations is growing constantly.'

But it isn't all David Beckham's fault. Indeed, as Dr Viel is keen to point out, porn is also behind the increase - not just in penoplasties, but in breast enhancement and labiaplasty surgery as well.

'It is also the same for girls with smaller breasts,' he explains. 'It’s a similar problem. More and more young people are coming here asking for this operation. 

'I am here to help the people. I’m here to listen. I’m not here to judge. But the demand is at an all time high.'

For those already in the porn industry such as O' Connell, the pressure to have a large penis is extreme, and as a result, there's little that adult actors won't do to enhance their assets.

'I always had a big one but I wanted a monster,' says O' Connell who had the girth of his penis increased using fat injections.

'Having a big penis is the ultimate - there's no way you could make it in this [porn] industry without it and having surgery helped me get roles every time.'  

O'Connor, who pioneered a sub-genre called Gypsy porn before retiring after meeting the woman he describes as 'the love of my life', describes the sum he paid for the procedure as 'the best money I ever spent'.

But while O'Connor is thrilled, not every penoplasty works out as imagined, with just 35 per cent of men happy with the results, according to the NHS.

Prices for penis extending devices can be as low as £10 - a far more affordable option than a £6,000 penoplasty - but Dr Viel says men who try to give their bits a boost using a contraption bought online risk wasting their money.

'Unfortunately there is no miracle cream to enlarge your penis,' he says. Instead, surgery is the only option for those who think themselves small - or simply want a boost.

'The majority of clients are average-sized but you get the odd one who is already very well endowed and doesn’t need anything but thinks that he wants more,' explains Dr Viel.

'Then there are also men who have a real small penis and they need help, yes. Having said that, there's not much difference, mentally, between a man with a real small penis and a man with a normal penis who feels small.

'It's clear this problem has been neglected by the medical profession for a long time.'