The Royal Family was given little time to mourn with the Queen after Prince Philip’s funeral as they were urged to ‘get in their cars and go home’ due to Covid restrictions.

Mike Tindall, who is married to the Queen’s granddaughter Zara, said saying goodbye to the Duke of Edinburgh was ‘always going to be difficult’, but was made ‘tougher’ by Government restrictions.

He has praised the Queen for her ‘amazing’ strength after she was forced to sit alone during the 30-person service at Windsor Castle on April 17.

Speaking to BBC Breakfast, he said: ‘Having to see the Queen make a stand in terms of having to show what the world is at the moment and sit on her own and be as brave as she was, I thought just summed up her up as a lady. She was amazing.

‘Then the funeral finished and it was “Get in your cars and go home”, but that is what is allowed, that is what the rules state, so that is what happened.

‘It was tough but I thought the actual funeral was done so well that I think he will be looking down and he would have actually been happier about the way it happened.’

While 30 people were permitted to attend the service, only 15 royals were permitted to attend a wake after the funeral.

Mr Tindall’s baby son has the middle name Philip in honour of the duke, who died just 19 days after his great-grandson was born.

The former England rugby player, who also shares daughters Mia, 7, and Lena, 2, with wife Zara, told the programme: ‘We are loving it at the moment. It is always nice to have a little boy to keep me company. I am surrounded by ladies.’

His comments on the funeral came after he opened up about the devastating effect Parkinson’s disease has had on his father and the isolation his parents have faced during the pandemic.

Mr Tindall, a patron of Cure Parkinson’s, said his mother Linda is reluctant to enlist help to care for his dad as she is a ‘very stoic, northern lady who refuses to give her man up’.

He acknowledged the importance of allowing professionals to take some of the burden and said he is trying to convince her to accept offers of support.

The proud dad joined forces with the Duchess of Gloucester, patron of Parkinson’s UK, for a video conversation to mark World Parkinson’s Day.

Mr Tindall said his father Philip, 74, was diagnosed in 2003 but that the last five years have been particularly tough. 

The worsening of his condition stretches back 10 years to 2011 – the year Mr Tindall married Zara.

‘I would say he’s had a really sort of tough five years, maybe even longer actually,’ he said.

‘It’s our 10-year wedding anniversary and it was that year that … through his Parkinson’s, his spine in his back is obviously curved, and then it caused problems with his discs and then he had to have a wheelchair at the wedding. He could walk some bits of it.’

Speaking about how his father lost strength after a back operation and then suffered colitis, Mr Tindall added: ‘When you start adding those things up, they’ve made a massive change over the last 10 years, whereas before that, you know, it was a lot slower process.

‘Then you throw in lockdown and literally they’re both on the vulnerable list so they have not literally left the house in a year.’

Mr Tindall said his mum has ‘really missed companionship’ during the pandemic, as she ‘doesn’t feel now that she’s comfortable leaving my dad alone’. 

The Duchess of Gloucester, who is married to the Queen’s cousin Duke of Gloucester, acknowledged how tough Parkinsons can be on the whole family, especially primary carers. 

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Referring to his mother, Mr Tindall replied: ‘Yeah, we keep telling her that she doesn’t need to be that, but she’s a very stoic, northern lady, who refuses to give her man up.

‘And we’re trying to convince her that you’re not giving up your man, you’re just allowing the frustrating parts of it that, you know, get you sort of riled up, that someone else deals with and it also gives you a life.’

The duchess replied: ‘It can be really difficult to persuade somebody like your mother that for her own sake.’

The video call took place on April 7, but its release was postponed following the Duke of Edinburgh’s death on April 9. 

Mr Tindall said: ‘Thank you for everyone who is involved with any parts of Parkinson’s, it means a lot to me, especially from my heart and please keep doing it … hopefully (World Parkinson’s Day) will end one day.’

The ex-rugby player, who has long campaigned to raise awareness, has been fundraising for Cure Parkinson’s with a 750km (466-mile) bike ride.

Some 145,000 people in the UK are living with the disease, and identified as being clinically vulnerable to Covid-19, with an added risk for the majority who are over 70.

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