Zara Tindall ‘burst out laughing’ when husband Mike proposed in unusual way

A royal expert has claimed that Zara Tindall “burst out laughing” when her husband, Mike Tindall, asked her to marry him in a somewhat unusual proposal that was described as “rather lovely”

Zara Tindall “burst out laughing” when her husband Mike Tindall asked her to marry him while she was “watching TV”, a royal expert has claimed. In a special fashion-themed episode of Palace Confidential, host Jo Elvin started a discussion about royal proposals, namely rugby star Mike Tindall’s proposal to his wife, Zara, the daughter of Princess Anne, the King’s sister.

Speaking to the Mail’s royal editor, Rebecca English, and Claire Cisotti, Jo noted that Mike popped the question in a “down-to-earth” manner, something that she said they’d “expect”.

According to Rebecca, Mike, who at the time was living with Zara in Cheltenham, had revealed that it wasn’t a question of if but when, but he wanted it to be a surprise for Zara.

She said: “So, for him, there wasn’t a grand gesture. There was no sunset. There were no flowers. There were no rainbows.”

Rebecca continued: “He basically just walked into the house one day, I think, while she was watching TV and literally, yeah, got down on one knee and said, ‘Would you marry me?’ because he wanted to really catch her off guard.

“And apparently, she burst out laughing and laughed for ages, but I think it was laughter of delight, and eventually got out, ‘Yes’, and actually, I think that’s really rather lovely in its own way.”

Zara and Mike went on to tie the knot in July 2011 at Canongate Kirk in Edinburgh. The couple held their reception at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, with the bash reportedly including a vodka fountain.

It appears the pair like to enjoy a few laughs together, as reports emerged in March that Zara once got revenge on her husband after he indulged in a heavy night out, reports the Mail.

The former England captain, who was due to attend a coaching clinic the following morning, had been out with a friend and was struggling to return to Anne’s flat at St James’ Palace, where he was staying at the time.

However, there was no need for him to fear missing his appointment, as Zara sought help from the palace police, who burst into his room brandishing machine guns to get him up.

Mike said: “I was meant to be there in 45 minutes. My friend rings up Zara, who phoned the police post at the palace.

“They started giggling, saying they saw me at 4am on video cameras struggling to get to the doorway. She says, “I don’t care what you do. He needs to be in North London in 35 minutes.”

As a result, Mike apparently found himself in the back of a cab in as little as “three minutes”, noting that the police were “waving” him off.

He shared the hilarious story at a fundraiser for DEBRA, which assists people living with epidermolysis bullosa (EB). According to the NHS, the term refers to a group of rare skin disorders.