Mike Tindall Opens Up About Lucas' Royal Christening, Reveals Adorable Detail

Nov 25, 2021

Zara Tindall, Queen Elizabeth II’s eldest granddaughter, and her husband, Mike Tindall, attended the joint christening of their 8-month-old son, Lucas, and Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank's 9-month-old son, August, on Nov. 21. Mike opened up about the experience on “The Good, The Bad and the Rugby” podcast on Wednesday, Nov. 24.

According to Brides, Zara and Mike first met in a bar in Australia back in 2003 while watching the Rugby World Cup, which is fitting given Mike’s former career as a player for Bath and Gloucester. At that time, Zara was enjoying life in Australia while taking a gap year, and Mike happened to be in the bar since his coach had dropped him from the semi-final match. And so Mike, by a stroke of luck, was in the same bar at the same time as Zara. Luckily, Zara made sure to leave her number with one of Mike’s friends, who later delivered the number to the rugby player.

Around five months later, Mike and Zara were official, and the athlete even met Zara’s parents — Mark Philips and Anne, Princess Royal. Fast forward about four years, and Mike and Zara had moved in together to a place in ​​Cheltenham. That seems to have been the right decision because the couple quickly got engaged in 2010 after more than five years of dating.

While their 2011 wedding was private, it was still a festive affair at Canongate Kirk on Edinburgh's Royal Mile in Scotland thanks to a 400-person guest list. Another set of more recent developments for Zara and Mike is the births of their children: Mia Grace Tindall in 2014, Lena Elizabeth in 2018 and Lucas Philip Tindall in 2021. 

"It was a lovely day," Mike said of Lucas’ christening on Wednesday’s podcast episode.

"I took him swimming in the morning, so I think I readied him for (the christening)," Mike added. "He was quite looking forward to it when the water was coming out."

Though the queen has been dealing with health issues recently, she made sure to be there for the rare event of a royal double christening. Princess Eugenie and Zara Tindall, daughter of Princess Anne, hosted the joint baptism of their sons at the Royal Lodge in Windsor according to BBC News.

Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank's son, August Philip Hawke Brooksbank, was born in February 2021, while Zara and Mike Tindall's son, Lucas Philip Tindall, was born in March 2021. Evening Standard reported that this christening was the first time in modern history that there has been a double royal christening in the U.K. Previously, in Denmark, Crown Prince Frederik’s twins Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine were christened together in 2011.

The private service was attended by immediate members of the family and close friends, which included the presence of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. The queen’s attendance came just days after she returned to public duties following a short medically advised break.

BBC News reported that Elizabeth, 95, returned to public engagements on November 17, 2021, when she was pictured having a face-to-face audience with General Nick Carter, who is the chief of the defense staff at Windsor Castle. Previously, she had been out of the public eye for nearly a month after she was advised by doctors to rest after spending a night in hospital on Oct. 20 for medical checks.

She had also pulled out of two important events due to a sprained back: the Remembrance Day Service at the Cenotaph and the visit to General Synod, the national assembly of the Church of England.

This was the first time that the queen has not attended the event at the General Synod since it first began in 1970. Naturally, she was deeply missed, but she did not leave attendees without someone there representing the crown. ELLE reported that Prince Edward went to the event in place of his mother and read her message, which stated, "It is hard to believe that it is over 50 years since Prince Philip and I attended the very first meeting of the General Synod."

"None of us can slow the passage of time, and while we often focus on all that has changed in the intervening years, much remains unchanged, including the Gospel of Christ and his teachings,” it continued.

“Of course, in our richly diverse modern society, the wellbeing of the nation depends on the contribution of people of all faiths, and of none. But for people of faith, the last few years have been particularly hard, with unprecedented restrictions in accessing the comfort and reassurance of public worship."

In the rest of her note, she gave words of comfort and strength to everyone present at the assembly. Edward also told everyone in attendance that his mother sent her "sincere and deep apologies that she cannot be here today." He also added, "I think you probably understand why, and she regrets that deeply."

What do you think of the joint christening? Are you surprised that the queen was in attendance? Let us know — and be sure to pass this story on to others.