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Despite being known for steering clear of public displays of affection, or PDA, King Charles III doesn’t mind them from at least one of his relatives. A body language expert says the king appears “delighted” when Zara Tindall gets “tactile.”

Zara Tindall doesn’t let protocol keep her from engaging in PDA with King Charles

King Charles III and Zara Tindall, whom engages in PDA with her uncle, smile
Zara Tindall and King Charles III | Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images

Royal protocol, what protocol? King Charles’s niece, per body language expert Judi James, engages in friendly, heartfelt PDA with her uncle.

“One of the sweetest and most uncomplicated relationships in the royal family seems to be the one between Charles and his niece, Zara,” James told Express. “Unlike many of the people in the king’s life, Zara seems to treat her uncle with unfiltered fondness. And he seems to respond in kind.”

“Their public displays of affection are legendary,” the expert continued, saying it’s typically Tindall who initiates them. She looks “untroubled by protocol, status. Or even Charles’s customary avoidance of any touch rituals in public that go beyond a handshake.”

“She seems purely keen to show everyone how determined she is to give this sometimes solitary and reflective man a hug,” James added. 

Zara’s ‘total lack of shyness’ plays a role in her body language with King Charles 

Zara Tindall, whose PDA King Charles reacts in a 'delighted way to, per an expert, hugs her uncle
King Charles III and Zara Tindall | Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images

The king’s interactions with Tindall, as far as their rather touchy-feely body language goes, center around the Olympic athlete’s personality. “Zara is probably the most tactile member of the royal family,” James said. “And it must be her confidence and total lack of shyness or wariness that helps her create these moments of close proximity, eye contact, and tender touch like hugs or kisses on the cheek.”

“She will tend to take the more dominant role, too,” the expert added. Perhaps by “hooking an arm around Charles’s shoulders or neck.” Or “treating him more like an uncle in need of some tender loving care than a king who commands only respect.”

King Charles often looks ‘surprised but also delighted’ by Zara’s ‘loving displays’

James continued, sharing her analysis of how the king appears to react to Tindall’s PDA. “Charles’s responses are always interesting,” the expert said. “He seems to be surprised but also delighted by Zara’s more spontaneously loving displays.” 

King Charles, she added, “will often reciprocate the hug or return the eye contact and smile in a slightly more bashful but clearly happy manner.” What James called approval signals from the monarch are important because, as she explained, Tindall doesn’t take it too far. 

“They do have a filter and they know how and when to use it,” James said of the 42-year-old and her husband, Mike Tindall. “Zara would also show affection to the late queen in public. But she was much less demonstrative and used other ways than touch to get that affection across. 

With Charles upgrading from Prince to King, Zara might have felt the need to tone down some of her rituals accordingly,” the expert added. “But Charles’s own signals of quiet approval have clearly let her know that it’s business as usual in terms of PDAs since her uncle’s Coronation.”

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