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Charlie Elizabeth Culverhouse

King Charles III shares ‘sweet and uncomplicated’ relationship with niece Zara Tindall and even had a hand in choosing her baby name

King Charles III and Zara Tindall

A body language expert has highlighted the strong relationship between King Charles III and his niece Zara Tindall, calling their relationship 'one of the sweetest and most uncomplicated relationships in the Royal Family.'


The Royal Family's summer holidays are coming to an end, with the royal youngsters set to go back-to-school next week and the rest of The Firm preparing to begin attending engagements once again. 

The time together has likely been much appreciated by the family as they congregated for the first time at Balmoral Castle without the late Queen Elizabeth. HELLO! Magazine reports that Zara and Mike Tindall, as well as their children, have not joined the rest of the family in Scotland, a fact that one expert believes may have upset King Charles as the pair share a very close and 'sweet' bond. 

The pair have shared a close relationship ever since Zara was born on 15 May, 1981 and christened as Zara Anne Elizabeth Phillips that same June, with her uncle reportedly suggesting the baby name 'Zara' as an option to her mother, Charles' sister, Princess Anne. 

But while the royal was not in attendance at Balmoral, there have been plenty of occasions where the pair's unique relationship was on show and body language expert Judi James believes that their interactions show an unwavering support and love for each other. 

(Image credit: Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)

Speaking to The Express, Judi James revealed, "One of the sweetest and most uncomplicated relationships in the Royal Family seems to be the one between Charles and his niece, Zara.

"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 and the body language signals suggest they are always led by Zara, who seems 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."

According to the expert, Zara has a 'total lack of shyness or wariness' that allows her to create such loving moments between her and her uncle, something that Judi believes 'delights' the King. 

"Zara is probably the most tactile member of the Royal Family 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, hooking an arm around Charles’s shoulders or neck and treating him more like an uncle in need of some tender loving care (TLC) than a King who commands only respect."

(Image credit: Samir Hussein/WireImage/Getty Images)

She continued, "Charles’s responses are always interesting. He seems to be surprised but also delighted by Zara’s more spontaneously loving displays and will often reciprocate the hug or return the eye contact and smile in a slightly more bashful but clearly happy manner.

"These approval signals are important because although Zara and her husband Mike tend to employ playful and spontaneous body language behaviours, they are also very adept at not over-stepping the mark.

"They do have a filter and they know how and when to use it. 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. 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."

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