Royal Baby, Part 2: Zara Phillips, Prince William's Cousin, Pregnant With First Child

Queen Elizabeth II's granddaughter expecting baby with husband Mike Tindall

By Alexis L. Loinaz Jul 08, 2013 10:55 AMTags
Zara Phillips, Mike TindallZara Phillips and Mike Tindall/ via Getty Images

Kate Middleton's not the only one with a royal baby on the way.

In a double dose of royal baby watch, Prince William's cousin Zara Phillips is expecting a child.

This will be the first baby for Queen Elizabeth II's 32-year-old granddaughter and her husband, rugby star Mike Tindall, 34.

Per the BBC, the baby is reportedly due in early 2014.

"Mr. and Mrs. Mike Tindall are very pleased to announce that Zara Tindall is expecting a baby in the new year," Buckingham Palace said in a statement.

"The Princess Royal and Captain Mark Phillips, Mr. Phillip and Mrs. Linda Tindall, and members of both families are delighted with the news. This baby will be the first child for Mike and Zara and the third grandchild for the Princess Royal."

Zara and Mike tied the knot in Canongate Kirk, Scotland, in July 2011, just a few months after Prince William and Kate Middleton's lavish wedding earlier that April.

Meanwhile, royal watchers are on high alert for the impending arrival of Will and Kate's child, who will be the third in line to the British throne.

Kate, who is reportedly due on July 13 or 14, is expected to deliver the baby at the Lindo Wing of St. Mary's Hospital in London, where a suite can reportedly cost up to $13,000. To prep for all the media attention surrounding the birth, the front windows of that wing have reportedly been frosted to prevent paps' prying lenses from getting unwanted shots.

(The stakeout is in full swing: Two weeks before Kate's reported due date, photographers already began camping out in front of the hospital.)

The baby's birth and gender will then be revealed via a royal proclamation that will be delivered from the hospital to Buckingham Palace, where it will be placed on an easel—the very same one used to herald Prince William's own arrival 31 years ago.

Although traditionally the queen is to be notified of the baby's arrival via a hand-delivered notice sent to the palace, Prince William is reportedly planning to break with protocol and call his grandmother on an encrypted phone line to inform her of the royal baby's birth.