Mike Tindall says joining the royal family was ‘pretty easy.’ It’s a stark contrast to Kate and Meghan.
Mike Tindall and Kate Middleton had completely different experiences in joining the royal family.
Princess Anne’s son-in-law, Mike Tindall, said marrying into the royal family was an “easy” experience for him.
A few duchesses might be envious of that.
Tindall is a former professional rugby player and husband to Zara Tindall, King Charles’ niece.
She was born without a title and is 21st in line to the throne at the time of writing.
Royal experts said his experience, as a man and as a more peripheral royal, is very far removed from the high-stakes entries of outsiders like Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle.
Both women — now the Princess of Wales and Duchess of Sussex — gave up their careers and stepped into a harsh spotlight.
“Maybe that’s the case when you’re a white man marrying a royal family member with no titles,” Kristen Meinzer, a royal commentator, author, and host of several podcasts including “The Royal Report,” told B-17 of Tindall’s experience.
Mike and Zara Tindall have been married since 2011.
“In that case, all you get are benefits — access to wealth, fame, and power, minus the scrutiny and work,” she added.
Meinzer said it’s an entirely different experience for those who marry working royals, as they “aren’t just committing to a spouse, they’re also marrying into the family business.”
The Tindalls were never part of the family business
Mike is the cohost of a podcast, “The Good, the Bad, and the Rugby”, alongside [former player] James Haskel and [sports broadcaster] Alex Payne. In an excerpt of the trio’s upcoming book, obtained by The Telegraph, Tindall wrote about what it was like to join one of the world’s most famous families.
“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,” Tindall wrote.
Mike was introduced to his future wife in 2003 by Prince Harry, according to multiple reports. They dated for seven years before marrying in 2011.
Prince Harry pictured with Zara Tindall and Mike Tindall in 2014.
The couple have never been “working royals,” a term for members of the British royal family who carry out public duties on behalf of the monarch.
Working royals are entitled to funds from the Sovereign Grant, an annual allowance sourced from British taxpayers that covers official travel, property upkeep, utilities, and employee payroll. In 2023, the Sovereign Grant cost taxpayers £86.3 million, or around $112.6 million.
[In exchange, they are expected to forgo other paid work.]
Since Zara was raised as a private citizen, she was able to pursue a successful equestrian career, and in 2012, she won a silver medal at the London Olympics.
Similarly, Mike was able to continue his rugby career until he retired in 2014.
Though the couple doesn’t have access to the Sovereign Grant, they still “benefit financially” from their royal connections with various sponsorships, said Marlene Koenig, a historian, author, and expert on British and European royalty.
For example, Zara has multiple sponsorships, including with the outdoor clothing brand Musto, which Hello magazine estimates could be worth more than $100,000. Meanwhile, Mike has also secured sponsorship deals with Pueris CBD, Domino’s, Amazon Prime, and the online trading platform UFXMarkets, the outlet said.
“It is easy for Mike because he gets to benefit from his position without the responsibility being royal,” Koenig told B-17.
Kate and Meghan experienced ‘seismic’ pressure
Richard Fitzwilliams, a royal commentator and public-relations consultant, told B-17 that Tindall’s experience is vastly different from Kate and Meghan’s, who experienced a “seismic” level of pressure with “every movement monitored and every outfit examined.”
Kate Middleton worked as an assistant accessories buyer at the clothing brand Jigsaw before marrying Prince William in 2011. She then became a full-time royal, attending state dinners, conducting royal tours, and even setting up her own charitable foundation.
Kate Middleton married Prince William in 2011 and Meghan Markle married Prince Harry in 2018.
Kate’s private moments have been extensively documented, from the birth of her three children to her cancer diagnosis earlier this year.
She and other royals have long struggled with the intense scrutiny, complaining about press coverage and occasionally taking legal action.
Speaking on the “Happy Mum, Happy Baby” podcast in 2020, Kate said it was “terrifying” to greet the public at a photo call outside the hospital steps after the birth of her first child, Prince George, in 2013.
Kate was heavily scrutinized for her prolonged absence from public duties after undergoing abdominal surgery in January. Various theories — dubbed the “Katespiracy” — swirled around the internet until the princess announced she was receiving treatment for cancer.
Meanwhile, Meghan was an actor before she married Prince Harry in 2018. The duchess’ adjustment to royal life wasn’t easy, as she was often the subject of online trolling and racist press coverage.
Speaking on the “Teenager Therapy” podcast in 2020, Meghan said termed herself the “most trolled person in the entire world” in 2019.
The couple took a step back from royal duties in 2020 and went on to create their own charitable foundation and production company.
In a 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey, Meghan said she had suicidal thoughts when she was a working royal and that the institution failed to support her.
Buckingham Palace responded, appearing to question Meghan’s recollection, but said the issues we raised were still “taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately.”
Representatives for Mike Tindall and the Duchess of Sussex declined to comment. Buckingham Palace did not respond to a request for comment on behalf of Kate.
