Mike Tindall’s Princess Anne story sparks fiery debate on GMB

Mike Tindall’s stint on I’m a Celebrity…Get me out of Here! has sparked a debate among Good Morning Britain (GMB) guests as they discussed his Princess Anne story and recent political remarks.

Former BBC royal correspondent Michael Cole and former England rugby player and Tindall’s co-host on The Good, The Bad and The Rugby podcast, James Haskell, joined Richard Madeley and Susanna Reid on Wednesday morning’s (16 November) episode of GMB.

Discussing the Princess Anne story, in which Tindall revealed he “sl** dropped” infront of his mother-in-law, Cole said: “Look he’s a nice guy [but] what on earth is he doing demeaning himself and diminishing the royal family by being on this show?”

He added that Anne “won’t be welcoming” that story. “Mike Tindall should have a sign on his head saying ‘I’m only doing this for the money’. And of course it’s a very large sum of money,” Cole continued.

Tindall is reportedly being paid £150,000 for his appearance on the ITV show, compared to Matt Hancock’s reported £400,000 payout and Boy George’s £500,000.

“It’s not his job to do that. Money is a good servant, but it’s a bad master,” Cole continued.

Haskell defended his friend, saying: “First of all, I think the fact that you suggest Princess Anne will react in a certain way, you’re guessing. I think one of the things people do around the royal family is that they guess. They have perceptions of what they’d like them to be, when actually they are a normal family.

“I think one of the things [that the royals are trying to do] in 2022 is to be more open. You’ve got King Charles, and his desire to streamline what they’re doing. Everything around the Queen’s passing, it was the humanisation that was important.”

Haskell added that he thought Tindall’s story “humanised” Princess Anne. He added: ‘You know, tearing his trousers is embarrassing and she’s come back with the best retort ever, and you’re just like ‘wow, what a woman’.”

Cole and Haskell also touched on Tindall’s political comment from Tuesday night’s (15 November) episode of I’m a Celeb, in which he said all politicians were “f***ers”.

“He made a very pointed political remark,” Cole said, adding: “That’s royal commentary isn’t it. The royal family and politics do not mix. Why can’t he, if he wanted to do a job, do an honest job, be a coach or something.”

Haskell defended Tindall’s comments, saying: “I don’t disagree with his view on politicians by the way, I won’t repeat it, and I think actually, it’s not King Charles talking about it, it’s not Prince William talking about it, it’s not those people making those statements. It’s someone who is so far removed making a comment.”

Elsewhere in the segment, which was cut short by an address from prime minister Rishi Sunak, Haskell was asked whether Tindall would have had to seek permission to be on the show, to which he replied: “I think he had to get all sorts of permission to do this, but he’s not a serving, he’s not a working royal. Zara’s not a working royal. I think this is tied to what he wants to do.”