Roberto Cavalli Tirade

Here are a few excerpts from Roberto Cavalli's interview with the Telegraph's Celia Walden.

Roberto Cavalli on Madonna... "She is not nice with anyone: she doesn't know how to be nice."

On Victoria Beckham... "Sadly, now that she's in LA, it's difficult to see one another. We talk all the time on the phone, though. She is such a fantastic woman."

On the way women dress today... "There is a real vulgarity in the way women dress at the moment. They show off too much and try too hard. They don't understand where the line is between sexy and vulgar. I know where that line is."

On rumours that he is gay... "I am not gay. I detest men - dressed or naked - but women..."

On English style... "The English - oh my God. I shouldn't say this because I live part of the time in London, but they are on a par with the Swiss stylistically."

On his own achievements... "In 1970 I was the number one designer in the world; people like Armani were nothing next to me."

On celebrity diffusion collections... "I'm very much against all these celebrities doing diffusion lines. Do I suddenly get up in the morning and say that I am going to start a singing career, with the horrible voice that I have? That's what these girls do when they show the world how horrible their fashion ranges are. Money is the most corrosive aspect of life today because it means that all attention to detail is forgotten. Kate Moss's collection was badly made, stupid and bland; you see things like that everywhere. You can't just buy things for the label - it's ridiculous."