Zara Tindall made a sarcastic remark in response to a story about her cousin, Prince William, during an appearance on the Talk Horse podcast. The daughter of Princess Anne joined Pippa Funnell MBE and Made in Chelsea star Tristan Phipps to discuss balancing family life with her eventing career and facing fear as you get older.
During the discussion, Pippa recounted an occasion when she met Prince William in particularly awkward circumstances. She shared: "I don't know if I've said this story on Talk Horse, but the one and only time I've met your cousin was at Badminton."
The Gory Encounter at Badminton
Pippa explained that her horse left a leg at the gate going to Huntsman's Close, causing her to fall off on a wet, mud-studded day. She had to take a helicopter to return in time for her second horse due to a stud wound. She said: "And [with] the second horse, exactly the same thing happened. [I] fell off at the same gate, left the same leg, fell on the same piece of mud on the second horse."
Walking back to the stables, she encountered Prince William, who said, "You had a good day?" Pippa laughed, recalling: "And I'm thinking, I'm covered in blood and mud."
Sarcastic Response and Family Banter
Zara responded sarcastically: "Does it look like it?" prompting laughter. Her husband, Mike Tindall, suggested the encounter could serve as an "icebreaker" if Pippa were to meet William again, while Tristan joked that the Prince might not recognise her without the blood and mud covering her.
Zara is believed to share a close relationship with her cousin and has reportedly been known to tell him when he is being "pompous". Royal author Robert Jobson told the Daily Mail that Zara "can tell the heir to the throne he is being pompous" and claimed that "he takes it". Jobson added: "She knew him before he was a headline" and stated that she "has no angle" when she tells the future King how it is.
Marriage Insights and Family Ties
Zara is also one of the godmothers to Prince George, the eldest of William and Princess Catherine's three children. The equestrian has three children, Mia, 12, Lena, eight, and Lucas, five, with her husband Mike.
Elsewhere on the podcast, Zara opened up about her marriage, explaining how the highs and lows of their respective sporting careers have brought them closer together. She shared: "I think actually our sports have worked quite well together, [those who participate in] rugby and eventing are quite similar minded people."
She added: "So they say that being in a rugby match is like being in two car crashes a week and I would say if we had a fall, it would be similar, it would be similar stats I reckon." Zara continued: "And obviously through our careers and dealing with each others highs and lows, like dealing with it ourselves and injury, it's actually maybe made it stronger in our, not in our relationship, well, maybe in our relationship, but also in our careers."
She concluded: "I think we enjoy the same things, even if we don't agree on some things, like we're very similar in what we enjoy."
