‘It is about survival in its rawest state’: Jojo Moyes on her favourite film ‘The Black Stallion’

Released when she was 10 years old, and at the height of her horse obsession, Jojo Moyes’ favourite film of all time has her racing to tell all to Christine Manby

Child actor Kelly Reno as Alec in the saddle of the Black Stallion (Alamy)

Throughout our lifetimes we’ll read a great many books, watch a great many films and hear a great many songs, but most of us find our favourites early on. Best-selling novelist and screenwriter Jojo Moyes is no exception.

Moyes began her writing career as a journalist, enjoying a stint at The Independent before she published her first novel Sheltering Rain in 2002. Since then, Moyes has written a further 14 novels and a collection of short stories, which have sold more than 39 million copies worldwide and been translated into 46 languages. She is the author of Me Before You, which became a film starring Emilia Clarke and Sam Claflin. Moyes lives in Essex with her three children, her rescue dogs and her horses. She is a keen horsewoman and that passion is reflected in her choice of favourite film, The Black Stallion.

“I was 10 years old when it was released,” Moyes says. “And at the height of my horse obsession (which has never really gone away).”