Royal You Should Know About: Zara Tindall
Official Title: Zara Phillips Tindall (no titles here!)
Place in Order of Precedence: Zara is the 18th in line for the British throne, although at birth she was sixth, and the second oldest of The Queen’s grandchildren
Romantic History: Zara met rugby union player Mike Tindall, who was playing for the England national team, during their Rugby World Cup-winning campaign in Australia in 2003. They got engaged in December of 2010 and actually got married the same year as William and Kate, but flew much more under the radar. One of my favorite parts of their wedding was a pre-wedding party on the royal yacht Brittania, where we got to see many of the royals getting on and off the board in normal and cute rehearsal dinner wear. They got married on July 30, 2011 at the Canongate Kirk in Edinburgh, Scotland, with 400 guests in attendance. Zara’s dress was designed by Stuart Parvin and she was loaned the Meander Tiara. A reception was held at Holyrood Palace following the service, the Queen’s official residence in Edinburgh.
Children:
Mia Grace Tindall
Lena Elizabeth Tindall
Zara is currently pregnant with her third child, and has been very publicly open about suffering from miscarriages in the past.
Work and Key Patronages:
Tindall is not a working royal and her parents chose to not give her and her brother titles when they were born, but she is a very close member of the royal family and is seen at all of the big family-wide events like Royal Ascot, Trooping the Colour and Christmas in Sandringham. Since she isn’t a working royal, she does have to earn a living, which she has mainly done as an equestrian and spokesperson. She also embraces the royal role of philanthropy and frequently supports and attends events for various charitable causes, mainly revolving around spinal injuries, equestrianism, and children's causes.
Patronages:
The Catwalk Trust
Inspire, a Salisbury-based medical research charity which helps to improve the quality of life of people with spinal cord injuries
Sargent Cancer Care for Children, the UK's leading charity for children's cancer.
Lucy Air Ambulance for Children, which is the UK's first dedicated air transfer service to fly critically ill infants and children to hospitals for urgent care
Mark Davies Injured Riders Fund.
Cancer Research UK
Why You Want to Have Tea with Her:
The daughter of a personal favorite, Princess Anne, the Princess Royal, and Captain Mark Philips, Zara’s parents chose for her and her brother to not have titles, but that doesn’t mean she hasn’t lived a totally fabulous life. They currently live on the Gatcombe Park estate, which is the private estate of Princess Anne. They have their own fabulous house in the 700 acre property, which is very a functional and financially stable working property, hosting famous horse and eventing annual events.
Princess Anne is a famous horsewoman, and Zara followed in her footsteps, competing as part of the 2012 Olympic Team. That was the year that the games were in London, and when she won a silver medal for the team event, Princess Anne (a member of the International Olympic Committee) presented her with the medal, one of my all-time favorite royal family moments.
They are also very close with William and Kate and their kids, and are often seen at outdoor horsey events with them running around and playing. Zara is also uniquely close with Prince Charles and I love seeing them chatting at events!
Her husband Mike was a professional rugby player (he was on the English national team and won the World Cup in 2003) and has a very successful podcast The Good, The Bad & The Rugby along with being a brand ambassador for charities and other companies. They both have a bit of a history of bad driving - Mike had 2 DUIs in his past, and Zara had her license taken away for 6 months recently for a number of speeding infractions.
They definitely fly under the royal radar more than the working royals, but they also have more flexibility in taking paid public work. This can lead to a double edged sword of wanting to appear “royal” and not upset the Queen, but still make enough money to live their fabulous lives.
