Prince George is aware 'he's different' to siblings Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis

Prince George looked like any ordinary seven-year-old boy in the birthday pictures of him that were released last week.

• The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have tried to shield their eldest son, Prince George, from feeling favoured as the future King of England
• But he's aware he's "different" to his siblings, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis
• In other royal news, Prince William has been voted the least attractive because of this trait

But he's far from ordinary, as he's third in line to the throne, and it's now been revealed he knows he's different in some way to his younger siblings, Princess Charlotte, five, and two-year-old Prince Louis.

Royal expert, Katie Nicholl told OK!: “I think George understands, like William did from a very early age, that he’s different from his younger brother and sister and that he’ll have a different future.

"After all, he gets taken away to do photoshoots with Her Majesty the Queen, so he must notice he’s been singled out."

However, she insists that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge try and protect their eldest child from the burden of knowing how his life is going to pan out, and make sure their three children feel as equal as possible.

READ MORE: Prince William and son Prince George celebrate this exciting news

She said: "George is an absolute pleasure to be around and that’s down to his parents.They’re not raising him to be spoilt or to have an inflated sense of his own importance.

"He doesn’t get special treatment just because he’s the future heir. They make a point of ensuring their three children feel equal and that they’re all treated the same.”

She continued: “I don’t think William and Kate have made a big thing of saying to George, ‘One day you will be King.’ They want to protect him from that moment, so it’s an idea that’s being introduced to him gradually.

"The true enormity of what his life will one day be isn’t something he’s fully aware of yet.”

Prince William and Kate Middleton’s decision to play down the importance of George's future may be down to William not wanting his son to feel how he felt growing up.

Katie said: “As a young man, William really struggled with that notion of kingship. The realisation that he had no choice about which path his life would take, that he couldn’t become a doctor or a vet if he chose, weighed very heavily on him.

“He got treated differently from his younger brother. When the boys went for tea with the Queen Mother, William would get the first choice of sandwiches or cake.

"It was all about William. I think that’s why Diana overcompensated in terms of her affection for Harry because she was very aware that he didn’t get the same attention William got.”