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Mike Tindall, husband of Princess Anne’s daughter, Zara Tindall, was the first member of the royal family to appear on I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here! A body language expert analyzed their gestures after they reunited. According to the expert, the couple demonstrates an “intense love and affection.”

Mike Tindall on ‘I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here!’

Zara and Mike Tindall hold hands during the Cheltenham Festival.
Zara and Mike Tindall | Samir Hussein/WireImage

Mike caused a stir when it was announced he would appear on the reality show I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here! Members of the royal family are famously private, so this was a big surprise. Some royal experts thought Mike shouldn’t be on the show. They thought he might embarrass the royal family and give away too much information.

Former BBC royal correspondent Michael Cole took issue with a scene where Mike shared an embarrassing story about his mother-in-law, Princess Anne. “He married the late queen’s granddaughter,” says Cole during an interview on Good Morning Britain. “He’s got a lovely family. He’s a nice guy. What on earth is he doing demeaning himself and diminishing the royal family in this show?”

Mike and Zara Tindall have a strong relationship

Body language expert Judi James shared her analysis of Mike and Zara with Express. According to her, their gestures point to a loving relationship.

“The groan as Mike buried his face in Zara’s neck and hugged her as though his life depended on it showed exactly how much these two need and missed each other during Mike’s stint in the jungle,” James tells Express. “Mike and Zara’s hug here was one of total encirclement in each other’s arms, complete with some tight and then re-tightened squeezing to add intimacy and signal the intensity of their feelings of loss at being apart.”

James says the way Mike and Zara embraced shows they have an intense love. The couple was only separated for two weeks, but they behaved as if it had been months since they saw each other. “It was the kind of hug someone might normally perform after a very long separation and to do this ritual after only a two week gap shows the intensity of their love and affection,” says James.

How Zara and Mike Tindall met

Zara met Mike, a former rugby player, during a 2003 trip to Australia. Before meeting Mike, Zara was in a relationship with Richard Johnson. During Zara’s tip, Mike was there playing in the rugby World Cup. They two happened to be at the same bar when Zara asked a mutual friend of theirs to give her Mike’s number.

After Mike won his rugby match, he returned to the United Kingdom to celebrate with his teammates. Zara and Mike began secretly dating. “They’re fiery people,” says a commentator during the documentary Mike and Zara: No Nonsense Royals. “And they often have a great sense of humor. They’re the kind of people who work hard and play hard.  And I think that’s what Mike and Zara had from the offset. I think they had fire in their bellies and fun in their hearts.”

Showbiz Cheat Sheet acknowledges conditions and cultures can impact body language and is sensitive to all backgrounds.

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