Mike Tindall Confesses Harsh Reality Of Marrying Into The Royal Family

Marrying into the British royal family sounds like a fairy tale. Suddenly, you're privy to a high-end lifestyle that most people could only ever dream of, you're the subject of fascination for millions, and with so much money, you won't have to worry about working another day of your life. 

But, according to retired rugby champ Mike Tindall, the reality of marrying royalty is not so cut-and-dry. As someone with personal experience, Mike knows firsthand that becoming a member of the royal family doesn't mean it's an easy life from here on out. Mike is the husband of Zara Tindall, the granddaughter of the late Queen Elizabeth and daughter of Princess Anne. Mike and Zara were married in 2011 and have three children together. Princess Anne opted against giving royal titles to her children, meaning Zara isn't referred to as "princess," but there's no less attention on the royal and her husband.

Mike opened up about the reality of his financial situation during the filming of the ITV1 & ITVX documentary "Grand Slammers," which centers around Mike and the eight other squad members who took home the Rugby World Cup in 2003. "Everyone thinks that just by marrying Zara that means it's all fine and dandy," he revealed, per Hello! Magazine. "But that doesn't stop the fact that you need a job. And it's not that easy, you know — you get quite institutionalized into rugby, it's a way of life and you leave the game and that's not there."

Mike Tindall put to rest yet another misconception about marrying into the royal family. Along with not becoming instantly rich, he pointed out in his interview how difficult it was to adjust to his new persona and highly publicized life. "I don't think you can ever sort of describe when you're so used to being around that many people, and understanding, because of it being ingrained in you, where you fit in to then not being that person," he stated.

After 17 years of playing professional rugby, Tindall announced that he was retiring from the sport in June 2014. Tindall found the enormous life change to be challenging. He was suddenly in the midst of an identity crisis, but his wife Zara was there to support him. "Zara would say if she was honest it was probably a year it took me to figure out what I was, who I was going to be," he recalled. "You've got to then go carve where the next path is — you can never replace going to work with 35 of your best friends every day."

Tindall's eye-opening interview for the "Grand Slammers" documentary marks his second big TV appearance, with his first being on the reality TV show "I'm A Celebrity Now," per BBC.