Mike Tindall offers a glimpse into what royal life is really like behind palace doors

Royal fans have no doubt found themselves at one time or another wondering what life is like at Buckingham Palace and how the Royal Family spend their days.

Now, Mike Tindall, who joined the Royal Family in 2011 after marrying Zara Phillips, has offered a rare glimpse behind palace doors in his new book, The Good, the Bad, and the Rugby: Unleashed.

Tindall reveals that, for the most part, the Royal Family is just like any other loving family. He also clears up misconceptions about the late Queen Elizabeth II’s private life, describing it as surprisingly “normal”.

“Her life wasn’t like an episode of Downton Abbey, with meals on long tables and everyone dressed in their finery every night,” he wrote in and excerpt shared by MailOnline. 

“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.”

He further revealed that when the Royal Family spent “precious time together” for lunch it was often a “relaxed” affair.

“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.”

In addition to revealing how the Royal Family spend their time away from the public eye, Tindall also opened up on the touching bond between his wife Zara and Queen Elizabeth while reflecting on some regrets he has about missed conversations with the former monarch.

While reflecting on royal connections, Tindall hinted at the grief his wife felt after the Queen’s passing.

“Watching what Zara had to go through, obviously she loved the Queen beyond everything else,” he said.

“Their connection with horses, they had a real bond around that. It’s like the world has lost its grandmother in some way.”

For Tindall, the Queen’s passing also represented a lost opportunity to learn from someone at the centre of so many historical moments.

“I also have loads of regrets about not asking her so many more things… Having nervousness when you sit there, get that lucky seat of being sat next to her,” Tindall said.

“Going back through history and everything she’s possibly seen; 15 prime ministers, I don’t know how many presidents.”