Mike Tindall has opened up about his "regret" following the death of the Queen - and how the royals came together after she passed away.
In a special episode of his podcast The Good, The Bad and The Rugby, the former rugby player, who is married to the Queen's granddaughter Zara Tindall, reflected on the past few weeks since the monarch passed earlier this month. Mike attended many events with his wife's late grandmother - both publicly and privately. They were often seen laughing and joking at horseracing events, for which they shared a joint passion. He was at several events over the past few weeks that marked the Queen's death - including her funeral and committal services at Westminster Abbey and St George's Chapel, Windsor.
On the podcast, which was released today, host Alex Payne asked Mike if he realised how lucky he had been to spend time in the Queen's company.
And he replied. "I do but I have loads of regrets about not asking her so many more things and having nervousness when you get that lucky seat to sit next to her."
When asked what he would have asked her if he could, Mike replied: "Just going back through history and everything that she's possibly seen like 15 prime ministers and however many presidents it is but to go through everything.
"When she is meeting dictators, she has to stay neutral and just perform her duty."
When asked if he had ever asked the Queen any of this, Mike added: "I was starting to get to that point but I hadn't barrelled in - I know you would have barrelled in.
"But guaranteed, when you sit there, it's not that easy."
Elsewhere in the episode, Mike reflected on the last few weeks and said: "It's been sad, emotional but happy. In some ways amazing. To see the family come so close together overnight.
"You never predict it. A 96-year-old lady, you know it's going to happen but you're never ready for when it does.
"Watching what Zara had to go through, obviously she loved the Queen beyond everything else. Their connection with horses, they had a real bond around that.
"It's like the world has lost its grandmother in some way."
In the days after his wife's grandmother's death, Mike took to Instagram to share two moving tributes to the Queen.
The first showed the Sydney Opera House with a photo of the late Queen projected on the side, and the second a sketch of a tearful corgi.
The Queen passed away in Balmoral on September 8. In the days that followed, members of the royal family took place in a number of engagements and met well-wishers.
Zara joined her mum Princess Anne to view tributes outside the Castle, looking emotional as she stood side-by-side with her cousins and uncles to see hundreds of bunches of flowers.
She also joined her cousins for the Grandchildren's Vigil, which say the Queen's eight grandchildren standing around the coffin as she Lay in State in Westminster Abbey.
