The Man Who Evolved into a Modern-Day Robin Hood

Name: Phillip Leitch
The profession: Professional jouster
The organisation: Kryal Castle, Ballarat
The title: Experiences Director
The pay: $70,000 plus family accommodation on location at Kryal Castle

7am: I live onsite at Kryal Castle just outside Ballarat, in a three-bedroom house with my wife and daughter. The lounge room has an armour display, so it’s also my change room.

My armour weighs 36 kilograms, but I don’t put it on first thing: I’m also the manager here so have other parts to my role. We have about 130 staff on the books and about 30 work every day. I need to open up the office and let everyone know what’s happening.

9am: I’ve been interested in the Middle Ages since I was young. One of the first games I played was pretending to be Robin Hood. Eleven years ago, when I found myself working here, all this weird knowledge I had about the Middle Ages actually became important.

My wife and I have 12 horses, but the horse I joust on is my black Friesian stallion, Valiant. In jousting, if you’re not getting along with your horse, you’re having a bad time. It’s a real partnership.

I’ve had Valiant since he was one, when I decided I wanted to joust. He’s 17 now. We did a lot of training and learning together as he grew up. He’s taught me as much as I’ve taught him.

10am: My first ride each day is the skill-at-arms display. We ride out in a medieval costume with spears and lances. Me and another knight run an obstacle course, which includes hitting a spinning target called a quintain. We do the course once for accuracy and once for speed; there’s a bit of competitiveness in everything we do!

Later, I’m the marshal for the trial by combat. It’s based on a historical thing; knights would settle their disputes by fighting with a sword or an axe. I’m basically the referee, but I’m there to keep an eye on things – like an equipment malfunction.

1pm: Lunch is often a piece of toast while I’m getting changed into my armour. It’s quite a chore and can take up to half an hour. I don’t enjoy the process, but once I’m on the horse I love it.