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By Victoria Halman

Crowds gathered to support a Merseyside charity as they campaigned to raise awareness of male suicide in Liverpool city centre.

CALM, the Campaign Against Living Miserably, launched its Man Down campaign to coincide with World Suicide Prevention Day.

The charity opened an information tent on Paradise Street, where people held banners championing the slogan ‘I am a Man and I refuse to be Man Down’, alongside a silent march around the city centre.

Suicide is the biggest killer of men under 50 in the UK, with 77% of all suicides being male.

Launch in pictures plus support shown on Twitter:

The Man Down campaign aims to inspire men to seek support when times are hard.

Simon Howes, campaign co­ordinator for CALM, said: “It’s great to launch the campaign across the whole of Merseyside.

“There is still a massive cultural barrier preventing men from seeking help as they are expected to just ‘man up’ and get on with it.”

Shoppers on Paradise Street were able to find out more information about the campaign.

One passer-­by said: “It’s great that male suicide is being publicised, and it is a good wake up call for the government to do more to help.

“My brother committed suicide, and I have struggled with mental health problems myself. Many people hide away because of the stigma attached to it.”

Watch video from the launch:

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A number of familiar faces attended the campaign including former St Helens rugby league player Paul Sculthorpe.

He said: “In the rugby league world we are big supporters of organisations like CALM. Male suicide is a huge problem and being able to support their work is fantastic.”

Crosby DJ Anton Powers also held his banner high yesterday on the streets of Liverpool, as an ambassador for the charity.

He said: “The more men that are encouraged to speak out, the better.”

Members of the public can join the celebrities in showing their support.

The campaign has asked men to tweet images of themselves holding the slogan to @theCALMzone using the hashtag #ManDown