Sir David Frost on Julian Assange and Robert Kennedy

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David Frost : " Assange doing what all journalists should do "

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At a press conference in Sydney last week, Sir David Frost told how he had interviewed Julian Assange recently and although he had viewed him at first as "soul-less" he warmed to the Wikileaks founder by the end of the interview.

Frost was talking at a joint press conference with retired British talk show host Sir Michael Parkinson. The two journalists are giving two shows at the Sydney Theatre where they will interview each other about their life long careers in journalism and television.

Sir David said that it hadn't been proved that anyone had been killed or even hurt by the Wikileak's revelations and that Assange was merely doing what all good journalists should be doing-exposing important crimes.

Frost who has been interviewing world leaders for nearly 50 years was asked who had been the most impressive and he was quick to respond: Robert Kennedy. "Kennedy had an amazing intellect, was intelligent and truth full, more so than I expected from a politician".

He said the former Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam was probably  the "most intellectual of all politicians, a towering intellect" while both he and Parkinson declared interviewing the South African president Nelson Mandela was the highlight of their respective careers.

And the worst interview subject-the former Hitler Youth leader Baldur von Schirach  who spent 20 years in jail for crimes against humanity.

"He expressed absolutely no guilt over his actions as a Nazi and I was repulsed at the end of the interview-he put his hand on my arm and said "at 23 you were in charge of your own television show and at 23 I was in charge of the Hitler Youth, you see, we really aren't too different''.

Both Parkinson and Frost said they were looking forward to hearing anecdotes from each other and were sure their audience would enjoy hearing tales of the many celebrities and world figures they had interviewed.

Said Parkinson :" I'm sure David will be my most fascinating interview to date!"

Frost said there was no plan at this stage to take their joint interview stage show anywhere else.