Mike Tindall Says Marrying Into the Royal Family ‘Was Pretty Easy for Me’

Mike Tindall said that he found marrying into the royal family to be “pretty easy” and “simple, really.”

Mike, 45 — who married Zara, the only daughter of Princess Anne, in 2011, just three months after Prince William married Kate Middleton — said in an interview with the Telegraph to promote his upcoming book The Good, the Bad & the Rugby — Unleashed that it all came down to him “being nice to them.”

In the book, which is out Oct. 24, Mike writes in an excerpt shared by the Daily Mail, “Believe it or not, marrying into the royal family was pretty easy for me. They were always nice to me, and I was always nice to them. Simple, really.”

Mike wrote the book with James Haskell and Alex Payne, his co-hosts of the podcast of the same name, The Good, the Bad & the Rugby. Mike, a former rugby union player who won the World Cup with England in 2003, has co-hosted the podcast for four years, and the book reflects on the highs, lows and memorable interviews across the show’s tenure.

Mike married King Charles’ niece Zara, 43, 13 years ago, and has since grown close to members of the royal family — including Prince George, 11, the eldest son of the Prince and Princess of Wales, both 42.

In Mike’s Telegraph interview, he revealed that George is an Aston Villa fan like his father, William, who has been a longtime supporter of the club.

“George loves his football,” Mike said. “I’ve played numerous times in the garden with him.”

“He’s passionate about Aston Villa, too,” he added. “Wherever he is, he’ll sit down and watch that game.”

Mike — known for his gregarious personality and for occasionally spilling tidbits about members of the royal family — also said of the Princess of Wales that “Catherine loves her running.” He added of the entire Wales family of five — Kate, William, George, Princess Charlotte, 9, and Prince Louis, 6 — that “They’re just a family who love sport.”

Mike interviewed Kate, William and his mother-in-law Anne for The Good, the Bad & the Rugby last year, where William revealed that Zara’s victory in equestrian eventing was the only occasion he’d been moved to tears while watching sports. (Zara, like her mother Anne, is an Olympian, competing in the 2012 London games as a member of the Great Britain Eventing Team.)

“The only time I’ve ever cried when watching sport was when Zara won,” William said. “I think it was the European championship.”

Reflecting on the Princess Royal’s appearance on the show, Haskell wrote in the forthcoming book, “Princess Anne knew more about sport than almost anyone I’ve ever met.”

In that same interview, filmed in the Green Drawing Room of Windsor Castle, Mike said of Kate, “I’m not going to say you’re uber competitive,” before pausing to give a nod indicating that she really was.

Princess Kate coyly replied, “I’m not competitive at all,” to which Mike replied, “I’ve seen her play beer pong!”

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Speaking on the podcast Seven: Rob Burrow alongside Zara (with whom he shares three children), Mike revealed a little known nickname of the future king that also involves a drink — “One Pint Willy,” a moniker given to William because “he is not the best of drinkers,” Mike joked.

At a royal engagement, William later admitted that Mike apologized for revealing the nickname. “When I saw him, I said, ‘Mike, when you’re not going to mention your nicknames doesn’t mean you mention mine. It’s not fair,’ ” William playfully said. “I’m sure it’s quite fun with Mike.”

Mike’s recent admissions weren’t the only time he’s spoken about being a member of the royal family. In a 2021 interview with the Times, he admitted that being in the royal family “has its benefits and it has its negatives,” he said. “You think about what you do and you have to be aware of it, but it doesn’t necessarily dictate. Zara and I have always been good at getting on with what’s right for us.”