Mike Tindall Makes Surprise Nod to Prince Harry Months After Cheeky Swipe at Brother-in-Law
Mike Tindall quietly buried the hatchet by resharing a clip featuring Prince Harry on his podcast's Instagram account.
After Prince Harry left the royal family in 2020, his once-close bond with Mike Tindall noticeably took a hit. Tindall hinted at that shift during an appearance at the Hay Literary Festival in May, when he recalled his 2011 wedding to Zara Tindall and joked that the Duke had behaved himself back when he was 'fun.'
After the apparent swipe, the former rugby player recently took royal watchers by surprise by resharing a clip from Harry's interview with Joe Marler on his Instagram account.
As reported by HELLO!, the repost in question featured a clip from Harry's recent appearance on Marler's podcast, Joe Marler Will See You Now, where the host asked the Duke who the "most famous person" in his contacts was. Playing into Marler's longtime friendly rivalry with James Haskell, Harry cleverly named Haskell as the said famous person, adding, "You've seen them play rugby, makes it a sport worth watching. Good looking guys, as well." Delighted by the mention, Haskell reacted on the Instagram account for The Good, The Bad & The Rugby, which he co-hosts with Tindall and broadcaster Alex Payne, saying, "Well, you can't argue with the Duke, can you? Looks like it's 1-0, Marler." Watch the video here!
Haskell's reaction to the clip likely would not have happened without Tindall's knowledge, who also co-hosts the podcast. As a result, royal watchers have interpreted the repost as a subtle olive branch to his brother-in-law. The gesture marks a contrast to Tindall's remarks at the Hay Literary Festival. At the time, Tindall had joked that he was surprised Haskell hadn't made a fool of himself at his 2011 nuptials. Taking a swipe at Harry, he had then quipped, "A lot of other people managed that way better than you – (like) Harry, when he was fun."
For those unversed, the 'fun' comment was widely interpreted as a reference to Harry's 'party prince' bachelor years, before he met Meghan Markle in 2016. After facing challenges within the royal family and watching his wife experience similar difficulties, the couple stepped down as senior working members and relocated to California. Tindall's remark was an apparent contrast drawn between the Duke's more carefree public persona and the more serious, family-focused role he has since embraced.
While Tindall and Harry grew apart in recent years, the former rugby player has mentioned him occasionally since 2020. During an appearance on I'm a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here in 2022, Tindall spoke about not feeling pressured after learning Zara was a royal, since he had previously met Prince William and Harry. "We were friends first, and then William and Harry were massive England fans at the time, so we'd met them numerous times."
