Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's biographer friend has been labelled 'odd' and his fans as "f***ing nuts" in a new book co-authored by Mike Tindall. The former England rugby player, who is married to Harry's cousin Zara, is set to release a new book next week titled The Good, the Bad and the Rugby - Unleashed, which he co-wrote with his podcast co-hosts.
The book seems to take a dig at Omid Scobie, known for his flattering biography of Harry and Meghan, Finding Freedom. This comes after Omid criticised Mike, who previously appeared on ITV's I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here, for capitalising on his royal connections, an accusation that has also been levelled at Harry and Meghan.
According to The Telegraph, James Haskell, Mike's co-author and fellow ex-rugby player, describes Omid as a "very odd bloke" and writes: "Royal fans can be mental. We all know that American royal fans are f***king nuts, especially Scobieites."
Mike married Zara, Princess Anne's daughter and King Charles' niece, in 2011. They have three children together and are regular attendees at royal events, including royal Christmas at Sandringham and last year's Coronation. Now retired from rugby, Mike hosts a podcast called The Good, The Bad and The Rugby with James Haskell and Alex Payne, reports the Mirror.
In the book, Mike shares his personal experience of marrying into the Royal Family. He pens: "Believe it or not, marrying into the Royal Family was pretty easy for me. They were always nice to me, and I was always nice to them. Simple really."
Sign up to OK!'s royal newsletter to get updates sent to your inbox for free
This is a stark contrast to Meghan's account of her royal life after marrying Harry in 2018. She criticised the Firm in her and Harry's controversial Netflix documentary, implying that Charles and Diana weren't welcoming towards her. However, Mike seems to have a different experience, reportedly being very close to William, Kate and their children - Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
At the Queen's Platinum Jubilee two years ago, Mike was seen playfully warning an excited Louis he had his eye on him. In an interview with The Telegraph, he also reveals his close relationship with 11 year old George, sharing how the young prince is following in his father's football-loving footsteps.
He says: "George loves his football. I've played numerous times in the garden with him. He's passionate about Aston Villa, too. Wherever he is, he'll sit down and watch that game."
It's no surprise that Mike, Zara and the Tindall children are so close to George, Charlotte and Louis. Mia is just six months younger than George, while Lena is the same age as Louis, born less than two months after the Prince. Charlotte is right in the middle of the two sisters.
Speaking previously to the Telegraph, Mike spoke of their bond: "Lena and obviously Louis are similar ages and Mia's sort of in between Charlotte and George, and then you've got Peter's [Phillips] children Savannah and Isla who are just a little bit older." He added: "James [Prince Edward and Sophie's son] is, well, not exactly the ring leader, but he's the oldest. So, yeah, it's going to be a good little group."
