Mike Tindall has opened up about what the late Queen was really like and addressed the 'drama' surrounding the Royal Family.

The former England rugby star married wife Zara, the late monarch's granddaughter 13 years ago and the pair have three children together. Although neither are working royals, the pair are known to be close to several members of the Firm, including the Prince and Princess of Wales and attend most high-profile royal events. Now retired from rugby, Mike has appeared on ITV's I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here, and hosts a podcast called The Good, The Bad and The Rugby with James Haskell and Alex Payne - with the trio releasing a brand new book, which hits shelves today.

Zara and Mike at the late Queen's funeral in 2022 (

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And in the book called The Good, The Bad and The Rugby - Unleashed, a whole chapter is dedicated to royalty - and in it Mike attempts to set the record straight about what life being part of the Firm is like - and what he experienced spending time with the late Queen.

He writes: "I'm sometimes asked if the Queen did informality like 'normal' people, and the answer to that is yes. Her life wasn't like an episode of Downton Abbey, with meals on long tables and everyone dressed in their finery every night, and Zara and I would often watch the racing with her on TV, as I'm sure lots of people reading this have done with their gran.

"Lunches were also relaxed, especially up in Scotland, where lunch would often be heading out into the open space of the Scottish Highlands for a picnic.

"There's a great picture of my daughter Mia sitting with the Duke of Edinburgh that captures exactly what those afternoons were like: members of a very close family who loved each other dearly spending precious time together. Yes, there's a lot of drama surrounding the royal family, but they aren't much different to anyone else underneath it all."

The late Prince Philip with Zara and Mike's oldest daughter Mia (

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Yorkshireman Mike also divulges the royals all understood where he came from and says he was accepted 'completely'. He adds: "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."

This description is in direct contrast to Meghan Markle, who has previously spoken out about how hard she found becoming a royal when she married Zara's cousin Prince Harry in 2018.She railed against the Firm in her and Harry'scontroversial Netflix documentary, suggesting the Prince and Princess of Wales weren't warm towards her.

Meanwhile, it is not the first time that Mike has opened up about Elizabeth II. In a special edition of his podcast after her death, he also reflected on the time spent with her and his 'regret'. At the time, co-host host Alex Payne asked Mike if he realised how lucky he had been to spend time in the Queen's company. Ad he replied. "I do but I have loads of regrets about not asking her so many more things and having nervousness when you get that lucky seat to sit next to her."

When asked what he would have asked her if he could, Mike replied: "Just going back through history and everything that she's possibly seen like 15 prime ministers and however many presidents it is but to go through everything. "When she is meeting dictators, she has to stay neutral and just perform her duty."

When asked if he had ever asked the Queen any of this, Mike added: "I was starting to get to that point but I hadn't barrelled in - I know you would have barrelled in. ut guaranteed, when you sit there, it's not that easy."

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