ZapGossip

Mike Tindall on Prince Philip’s funeral: It was how he would have liked it

Prince Philip’s funeral was exactly “how he would have liked it”, according to his grandson-in-law Mike Tindall.

The Duke of Edinburgh was laid to rest in a moving ceremony on Saturday (17.04.21) which was largely planned by the royal himself before his death on April 9 at the age of 99.

And Mike Tindall – who is married to Philip’s granddaughter, Zara Tindall – has said the service was “perfect” and exactly the sort of funeral the Queen’s consort would have wanted.

Speaking in this week’s episode of his ‘The Good, The Bad & The Rugby’ podcast, he said: “It’s been a difficult 10 days. If I look back on the day, as eerie as it was with no crowds and social distancing [because of COVID-19], and the way everything was, I think it was the perfect day, how he would have liked it, if that makes sense whatsoever. No fuss, get on with it.”

Mike, 42, also said he was impressed by the strength Philip’s wife, Queen Elizabeth II, has shown since her husband’s passing, especially as COVID-19 restrictions meant she had to sit by herself at his funeral.

He added: “My love for the queen was even better. She was sat there completely on her own, separated herself in terms of, ‘This is what the world is right now and I’m going to lead by example.’ And she’s amazing, literally amazing.”

The former rugby star ultimately hopes Philip is “looking down” on the royal family, and hopes he was “happy” with how his funeral was carried out.

He said: “It could have been his hat on his carriage that he rides, his gloves or the hat on his coffin – and the sword, the bugle, the piper – there were a lot of things that brought home memories. It was a sad day, but I think it was very well run. He was very well looked after and hopefully he’s looking down and he was happy with the day.”