A busy shopping centre has a gained new resident, a sculpture of a black dog named Horace, as part of a campaign to highlight the effects of mental illness.

The statue was unveiled at the N1 Centre, in Parkfield Street, Islington, on July 15, as part of mental health charity Sane’s 25th anniversary.

Marjorie Wallace, founder of Sane, said: “We are happy to have the black dog in Islington and we hope people will take a second look, realise where they can get help if they need to, or how they can help if they don’t.

“Saying things like ‘I am having a black dog day’ or ‘the black dog has been on my shoulder today’ is a lot easier than telling someone you feel depressed.

“The important message is you can live with and even master your black dog. The worst thing you can do is ignore him, because he will bite you in the ankles.”