Mike Tindall signals campmates to 'back off' over comments on Prince William: expert

Mike Tindall refused to cooperate during a conversation about the British Royal Family on Tuesday's episode of "I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here!" He reportedly subtly told campmates to drop the subject with his non-committal replies.

Body language expert Judi James pointed out how the former rugby captain only gave "great passive responses" when quizzed about the royal family during a conversation with Boy George and Jill Scott. He reportedly became noticeably quiet when the subject turned to the royals specifically about King Charles III and Prince William.

When asked if the Prince of Wales would be watching the show, Tindall only responded with a smile. He also feigned a look of surprise as George teased, "Of course he is. He's not watching it cause Mike's on it. He's watching it cause I'm on it."

Speaking about the scene, James told Metro UK how the 44-year-old's "super smart" body language signals showed he is able to switch into "discretion mode."

She explained that Tindall was "very smart about tuning out when necessary but without looking precious or secretive. Lying on his back he produces some very low response signals when Jill starts to ask about Charles's age, making it look as though she's just chatting to the group rather than quizzing Mike personally."

James added, "When William is mentioned we get a rounding of the cheeks to suggest affection but still no 'bite' from Mike in terms of adding to the conversation after his small noise of agreement over Charles's age. These are great passive responses to warn the rest of the group to back off but without looking or sounding reproving."

Tindall did not even say anything when George pushed him for a reaction to his joke about Prince William. He merely responded with an "open mouth of mock shock but still no active signals of communication to do anything but gently close down the subject. It ends with laughter but we can still see the others testing Mike's parameters and being politely shown when to back off."

Tindall has so far only talked about his wife, Zara Tindall, and mother-in-law Princess Anne on "I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here!" The British Royal Family has not publicly commented on his stint on the show.