A photo of Mike Tindall hugging Prince George contradicts Meghan Markle’s version of hugs being “jarring for Brits.”
For many social media users, Mike Tindall’s hug of Prince George defies the Duchess of Sussex’s assumptions.
Mike Tindall and Prince George’s embrace
A photo showing Mike Tindall, husband of Zara Tindall, hugging young Prince George has surfaced and many users have recalled Meghan Markle’s statements.
The image, taken on Christmas Day 2023 at Sandringham as the royal family made their way to church, reveals an intimacy that seems to contradict the Duchess of Sussex’s assumptions.
“Like I was a hugger, always been a hugger, I didn't realize that that is really jarring for the Brits." – #MeghanMarkle pic.twitter.com/B1BHWBYCKn
— Stephanie Sidley (@StephanieSidley) December 26, 2023
In the Netflix docuseries ‘Harry & Meghan,’ the duchess recounted how she felt awkward when she went for a hug during her first meeting with Prince William and Kate Middleton.
“I didn’t realize that is really jarring for a lot of Brits,” she commented.
His comments resurfaced after the photo of George and Mike Tindall went viral with more than 200,000 views and more than 4,000 likes.
Some users felt the photo calls into question Meghan’s generalization about Brits’ discomfort with hugging.
One netizen who received a lot of support online wrote: “Hugging and kissing in California is like saying “hi.” It’s totally meaningless and superficial. Everyone does it. Meghan is just one of the many who do this. Personally, I would rather a kiss and hug have some actual meaning behind it.”
Prince George, the future heir to the throne, seems perfectly at ease wrapped in his relative’s embrace.
Meghan’s husband Harry tells a slightly different story in his memoir Spare, pointing to William and not Kate as the one who was made uncomfortable by Meghan’s spontaneity.
“I introduced Meg, who leaned in and gave him a hug,” Harry wrote. “Which completely freaked him out.”
However, Harry also interprets the moment as a “collision of cultures,” implying that hugs are out of the norm for royals.
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In reality, the Windsors don’t seem to shy away from physical contact. In a recent BBC documentary, Kate and William can be seen greeting King Charles with kisses on both cheeks.
For his part, King Charles kisses and hugs his grandchildren; Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and little Prince Louis.
The Bishop of Hereford, Richard Jackson, also pointed out in the documentary King Charles III: The Coronation Year, how “extraordinarily affectionate” and “clearly close” the royal family is.
“They’re clearly a very close family,” the bishop said.
If anything, royals seem more open to hugging each other than newcomers like Meghan.
But the image of Mike Tindall and Prince George captures an intimacy that contradicts the stereotype that Britons are reserved.