While many little girls dream of being a princess, Zara Tindall (whose grandmother is the Queen herself!) is glad she grew up without a royal title.
Zara’s mother, Princess Anne, famously turned down Queen Elizabeth‘s offer to make her daughter a princess when she was born.
Their father, Captain Mark Phillips, was a commoner and also turned down a title that would have been given to him as a wedding gift from the Queen when he wed Princess Anne.
“I’m very lucky that both my parents decided to not use the title and we grew up and did all the things that gave us the opportunity to do,” Zara told The Times in a 2015 interview.
As children, Zara and her brother attendedTrooping the Colourand other royal events along with their cousinsPrince WilliamandPrince Harry, but their non-royal status allowed them to pursue other career opportunities.
Zara is an accomplished equestrian and even won a silver medal at the London 2012 Olympics as a member of the Great Britain Eventing Team. And she’s found success in commercial sponsorships.
Zara credits her parents, who divorced in 1992, for her work ethic.
“I probably get it from my parents,” she said. “Papa said to me, ‘If you want to get to the top you’ve got to do it properly, and if you want to stay at the top it’s even harder.’ ”
As for her former wild child status (Zara made headlines in 1998 when she got her tongue pierced!), she insists that she wasn’t as “wild” as it appeared in the tabloids.
“I don’t know if Iwasthat wild. I guess it looked like that because of my family background. I’m sure that is what it’s probably compared to,” she said.
source: people.com
