Stop pulling my ears, Mia ... they’ll end up like my dad’s!
IT’S one of the joys of being a child – hitching a ride high up on an adult’s shoulders.
The trouble is you need something to hang on to, so when Mia Tindall was hoisted aloft by her mum’s cousin Prince William, she made a grab… for his ears.
Wills appeared to wince as Mia clung on, perhaps fearing that he might end up like his father Prince Charles – who is often lampooned for his outsized lugs.
The Duke of Cambridge kept Mia safe by holding her ankles tightly as they followed the fiveyear-old’s mother Zara across parkland during the Burnham Market international horse trials in Norfolk. Not to be outdone, Mia’s cousin Princess Charlotte, three, took the high road too, on the shoulders of her mother, the Duchess of Cambridge, 37. Kate sported trendy tight black jeans and a Barbour quilted jacket.
Prince George was also involved in the family day out and found a perch on the generous shoulders of Zara’s husband, Mike Tindall.
Perhaps echoing Tindall’s swashbuckling days as an England rugby star, beaming George, five, raised a toy sword aloft as the family went along.
The Cambridges and Tindalls joined up to watch Zara, a former silver-medal Olympian, compete in the trials on Friday. Last year Zara, 37, fell from her horse but this time she finished a respectable third and fifth in that day’s events as her relatives cheered her on.
Zara – who met her husband during the 2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia, won by England – was later spotted being given a congratulatory hug by William, 36.
The two families, who enjoy a particularly close bond, wrapped themselves up well to combat the chilly weather, though George dispensed with a coat in favour of a fleece jumper. Charlotte wore a waterproof jacket, tartan skirt and black tights and her father opted for trainers, a flat cap and green anorak.
The trials have become a popular family event, with a bouncy castle and circus workshops for children. An onlooker said: ‘They were just like any other family, enjoying a day out and having a lovely time. There were no tantrums thrown by the kids and they all seemed very downto-earth. A few people noticed them, but generally everyone just carried on as normal.’