Kate Middleton

The images - which have been shown on Australian news channels - show George being carried on his mother's shoulders

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Ian Vogler / Daily Mirror

Intimate pictures of Kate Middleton and Prince George playing together during time off from royal engagements have been published in Australia.

The snaps were apparently taken by paparazzi without permission as the Duchess took her son for a stroll in the grounds of Government House at Yarralumla in Canberra.

The images show George being carried on his mother's shoulders, pushed in a buggy and sat on Kate's lap as the pair play together.

The Duke and Duchess were also photographed without their knowledge walking hand in hand along the foreshore of Lake Burley Griffin at Government House, casually dressed in shirts, jumpers and jeans.

The pictures are likely to be seen as an intrusion into the couple's privacy by aides and anger Buckingham Palace.

Tomorrow, William and Kate will travel to Uluru, one of Australia's most iconic sites.

The Cambridges will tour the popular tourist attraction - also know as Ayers Rock - that is a sacred site for the area's Aboriginal people.

The visit will be only their second night away from their eight-month-old son during their 19-day tour of Australia and New Zealand.

The couple took their baby to Sydney's Taronga Zoo yesterday where George met a bilby - a rabbit-like marsupial - that was named after him.

The prince, who will remain in Canberra with his nanny tomorrow, is growing fast and was excited to see other unusual animals during his brief trip to the popular attraction.

During their visit to the heart of Australia, William and Kate will fly to Yulara, a town close to Uluru, to visit the National Indigenous Training Academy which helps to train members of the indigenous communities who live near the World Heritage site to work in the tourism and hospitality trades.

The Duke and Duchess will view the academy's facilities before moving on to the Uluru Cultural Centre, where the local indigenous communities will give them a traditional welcome.

The royal couple will view an indigenous art display and later attend afternoon tea, given by the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory.

After tea, the Duke and Duchess will visit Uluru, taking a short walk along its base in the company of a local guide.

Uluru is a world-famous landmark - a huge mound of sandstone that stands almost 350 metres high and is more than two miles long and a mile wide.

The first European to see the natural wonder was the explorer William Gosse in the late 19th century and he named it Ayers Rock after the then Chief Secretary of New South Wales.

But the Aboriginal name for the striking feature - Uluru - is now widely used.

His parents took it in turns to hold George as he stood looking at the rat-like marsupial and got so excited he tried to clamber into the enclosure

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