‘WE MIGHT GET A DATE NIGHT IN’
AS ZARA AND MIKE TINDALL MARK NINE YEARS OF MARRIAGE, OK! CELEBRATES THEIR FAIRY-TALE ROMANCE AND LOW-KEY LIFESTYLE
Cheeky bottom squeezes, unabashed public kisses and giggles aplenty – it’s no wonder Zara and Mike Tindall represent royal couple goals. The relatable pair celebrate their ninth wedding anniversary this week and former rugby player Mike, 41, is looking forward to some quality time with his wife, who he affectionately calls “Zed”.
“With the restaurants opening, we might be able to get a date night in, so that will be nice,” he says.
His comment sums up their down-to-earth nature, which was witnessed when they appeared on BBC Two’s Top Gear last year – a first for royals.
Zara, 39, who along with her brother Peter never had an HRH title, is “thankful” for her “slightly more normal upbringing”. But Mike, who refers to his mother-in-law, Princess Anne, as “a legend” and his wife as “the boss”, says he didn’t marry Zara for her royal connections, insisting, “I’d love her if she worked in Tesco.”
Zara herself admits, “We’re pretty low-key.” Clearly more at home mucking out the horses than attending fancy events, she says, “I love the quiet and isolation of where we live,” adding that a quiet Saturday night at a local pub is their ideal night out.
They live in the grounds of Princess Anne’s Gatcombe Park estate in Gloucestershire with their daughters Mia, six – who’s a “fantastic bundle of energy” – and Lena, two, who Mike says is “never quiet”.
Family is a priority, as Zara explains, “We make sure we’re looking after the kids properly and then our jobs come alongside.”
She tragically miscarried twice before Lena’s arrival, later telling the BBC, “I think the hardest thing in our situation was that everyone knew.”
The couple met at a Sydney bar during the 2003 Rugby World Cup and Mike proposed seven years later while they were watching a film at home, just before Christmas 2010. They married on 30 July 2011 at Canongate Kirk, Edinburgh.
Mike, who had a nose job two years ago after breaking it eight times playing rugby, jokes that Jason Statham would be a good actor to play him in The Crown, with Zara opting for Charlize Theron or Jessica Biel.
With Mike reportedly buying Zara a £2.99 card on their first wedding anniversary, it’s safe to say that expensive love tokens might not be exchanged this year. But something tells us Zara really won’t give a hoot – so long as she can spend the special day with her beloved husband.