Q. I've got to ask you first about the movie The Horse Whisperer which starred Robert Redford. You've been quoted as saying it's "balderdash". Is that true?

A. Even worse than balderdash! You see, the man who wrote the novel – Nick Evans – is an English writer and he wanted to write a novel. Now a novel to me is fiction. He had no agenda to teach anyone about horses. His novel was about a love affair with horses in it. He came to one of my shows and he called me later and asked for some of my videos and asked a lot of questions which was fine at the time. He told me that he wanted his leading man to work in a similar fashion to the way I do. Well, what could I say to that? I can't tell somebody else not to do something.

What basically happened was he asked me if he could use my name in the movie but as I was writing my memoirs at the time I declined. Nick Evans then came to the States and got other ideas from different sources and I would say about 70% into the writing of the manuscript he sold it to some German backers who wanted to make it into a movie. Of course there were people on his back now and they wanted this movie to be very visual. I implored Nick Evans not to send a message of violence but look what happened... Have you seen the movie?

In it the horse was traumatized from an automobile accident. It has been quoted that I said horses have been mistreated on the set, but I have never said that. There was no overt human brutality to the horses as far as I know. My point is at the end of the film, in order for the horse to cure itself from the trauma, Redford says, "It's going to be impossible to tie the horse down...". They rope this horse on the front foot so he's only allowed to move three feet, they tie him up to his elbows, they swing ropes at him and they bash him to the ground. It's a horrible depiction and they are sending out a bad message to everyone watching it.

Q. Do you think the rural community will get your message of non-violence to animals? I mean, has there been any favourable feedback from that community?

A. It depends on what you mean by rural. The Middle-Eastern rural community has a vastly different concept of how to treat animals than, say, Canadian rural. What I will say is, yes, people listen, one at a time – a small portion do.

Q. Are you happy about that?

A. Of course. I'm heartened that a non-violent movement and relationship regarding animals is taking place world-wide.

Q. Is it going fast enough for you.

A. Of course not. If you're on a mission like this it will never go fast enough for you but you must do your best. If you're not doing your best then get up earlier and work harder and work to the level of satisfaction where you are doing your best for the animals.

Q. What about your mission....?

A. Well, it is a mission to me. How many people do you know who started life at 61 years of age? That was when my first book was published, "The Man who Listens to Horses", after having spent a lifetime working competitively with them since I was four years old.

Q. I believe your childhood with your father was violent.

A. Yes, I come from a violent background. I now have become a person who tries to find the good in everything. I don't hate my father for what he did to me. He believed he was right. His education and his upbringing told him he was right. I don't endorse this but you can't hate him for it. I tried desperately when I was younger to change his opinions, right up until his death but I never did manage it. His brutal treatment of me set my computer to find a different way of doing things. My attitude then and today is "Let's learn from that".

Q. Do you think that being able to win a horse's trust as you do is a forgotten art, or is it a learnt skill?

A. Both of the above. Everybody can attain this way of working with animals if they are willing to work with a certain kind of attitude.

Q. Which is?

A. It depends on which chip in your computer you nurture. How animals came to trust me was that I had already observed what nature had in place. Then I thought about what we as a species had a right to do with animals and I have ever since lived by my creed.

Q. Were you born with this gift?

A. As I said I saw what nature had in place....

Q. Which was?

A. Violence is never the answer. Watching the horses for hours and hours on end taught me through trial and error that they had a communication system that was critical for them and their welfare. I learnt that communication system and that's how I started.

Q. Have you ever been faced with a horse who refused to listen to what you were saying?

A. No. I have known horses that have been veritable "Hannibal Lector's" due to human brutality and they have been a little harder, but with raw horses who have not had any contact with humans there has been nothing close to a failure.

Q. 100% success rate then?

A. Yes.

Q. How has your message of non-violence been received overall?

A. In the early days it was horrible times for me. Nobody wanted to know. It wasn't until Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth endorsed my work that things started getting better and more people were willing to hear what I had to say.

(Right) Monty with Queen Elizabeth II.

Q. Are you working on any books at the moment?

A. Yes, I'm working on two. One is for pony clubs and one is for adults. They are due out in about a year's time.

Q. How do you find Australian audiences?

A. The greatest.

Q. Aw, come on now....

A. True. They are critically interested in what I do. They turn up en mass and they are vitally involved with animals.

Q. What is you greatest disappointment then?

A. It must be the blind critics. These are the ones who twist things around to demean me and my message.

Monty Roberts. It's been a great pleasure meeting you.