Harry and Meghan seem to have enjoyed themselves on day two of their Australian tour hours after announcing their big baby news.

Bringing the laughs, Prince Harry said ‘G’day’ to crowds at an afternoon reception – where he was delighted to see beer being served ‘in true Aussie style’.

Earlier the couple met another Harry and Meghan, a pair of koala bears named after them.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - OCTOBER 16: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex meet a Koala called Ruby during a visit to Taronga Zoo on October 16, 2018 in Sydney, Australia. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are on their official 16-day Autumn tour visiting cities in Australia, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand. (Photo by Dominic Lipinski - Pool/Getty Images)
Harry and Meghan meet Harry the koala bear at Taronga Zoo (Picture: PA)

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Video: Australian crowds come out in force to see Harry and Meghan

Hundreds of people come out to see Harry and Meghan in the Sydney sunshine.

The beaming couple, who announced they are expecting their first baby in Spring 2019 after touching down in Sydney, took any chance they could to raise a smile.

The jokes started early at Taronga Zoo, where Harry opened the Institute of Science and Learning.

Finley Blue, four, and six-year-old Dacha Gallagher both gave bouquets of traditional flowers to Meghan, with Harry joking: ‘Oh, you’re giving them both to her…’

When the zoo’s director, Cameron Kerr, told the Duke and Duchess of Sussex about the work the zoo does with pre-school groups, Harry pointed to the crowd of 13 to 19-year-old ‘Youth at the Zoo’ volunteers who were watching and pulled a mock confused face.

Then when the poor zoo director struggled with the syllables in Harry and Meghan’s official title, the Duke helped him out by calling themselves ‘the Sussexes’.

Harry said ‘G’day’ as he opened an afternoon reception at Admiralty House hosted by Governor General Sir Peter Cosgrove and Lady Cosgrove – who represents Queen Elizabeth in Australia and earlier gave Meghan a kangaroo with a joey in its pouch and a tiny pair of Australian sheep skin boots.

Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex meet members of the public during a walk about outside the Opera House in Sydney, Australia, Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2018. Prince Harry and his wife Meghan are on a 16-day tour of Australia and the South Pacific (Paul Edwards/Pool via AP)
Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Susse,  meet a little girl outside the Opera House in Sydney (Picture: AP)
Meghan the Duchess of Sussex receives native flowers from 4-year-old Findlay Blue after she and Prince Harry officially opened the Taronga Institute of Science and Learning at Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia, Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2018. Prince Harry and his wife Meghan are on a 16-day tour of Australia and the South Pacific.(Peter Parks/Pool via AP)
Meghan gets two lots of flowers at Taronga Zoo (Picture: AP)
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - OCTOBER 16: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex meet 98 year old Daphne Dunne during a meet and greet at the Sydney Opera House on October 16, 2018 in Sydney, Australia. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are on their official 16-day Autumn tour visiting cities in Australia, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand. (Photo by Paul Edwards - Pool/Getty Images)
Harry meets 98-year-old war widow Daphne Dunne – who has met the Prince on two previous occasions (Picture: Getty)

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Video: Harry and Meghan open new education facility at Taronga Zoo

Harry and Meghan open new education facility at Taronga Zoo in Sydney.

The Duke thanked the couple for giving their ‘magnificent’ home over for the week, before adding: ‘We are inviting all our mates in Sydney.’

Harry added: ‘We are both absolutely delighted to be here. We are really impressed to see you serving beer and tea at an afternoon reception in true Aussie style.

‘Thank you for the incredibly warm welcome and the chance to meet so many Aussies from all walks of life. And we also genuinely couldn’t think of a better place to announce the upcoming baby, be it a boy or a girl.’

Earlier in the day, crowds of thousands of fans started queuing nearly three hours early to catch the first glimpse of the royal couple at the Sydney Opera House.

Many were hoping for a glimpse of Meghan’s barely visible baby bump in a form-fitting cream dress by Australian designer Karen Gee.

Well-wishers brought homemade signs, the first gifts for the baby and newspaper clippings to meet Harry and Meghan in the sunshine.

Britain's Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, and his wife Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, meet an echidna held by Dr Michelle Shaw, left, during a visit to Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia, Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2018. Prince Harry and his wife Meghan are on a 16-day tour of Australia and the South Pacific. (Dominic Lipinski/Pool via AP)
Prince Harry and his wife Meghan meet an echidna held by Dr Michelle Shaw, left, during a visit to Taronga Zoo (Picture: AP)
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - OCTOBER 16: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex during a visit to Taronga Zoo on October 16, 2018 in Sydney, Australia. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are on their official 16-day Autumn tour visiting cities in Australia, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand. (Photo by Dominic Lipinski - Pool/Getty Images)
More jokes at the zoo (Picture: PA)
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - OCTOBER 16: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex during a visit to Taronga Zoo on October 16, 2018 in Sydney, Australia. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are on their official 16-day Autumn tour visiting cities in Australia, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand. (Photo by Dominic Lipinski - Pool/Getty Images)
Meghan’s tiny baby bump was only just visible in her white dress (Picture: PA)
Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex wave as they arrive at the Opera House in Sydney, Australia, Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2018. Prince Harry and his wife Meghan are on a 16-day tour of Australia and the South Pacific. (Dan Himbrechts/Pool via AP)
The couple said they were delighted to be able to announce their pregnancy in Sydney (Picture: AP)

As she completed her Sydney walkabout the Duchess told fans: ‘What an exciting time. I’ve been so happy.’

The couple shunned their tight schedule to spend longer than the 20 minutes allocated to meet as many fans as possible.

Among those in the crowd were sisters Hannah and Francesca Francis, 12 and 10.

Hannah said: ‘I told my sister we would see Meghan today but I couldn’t believe it when she came over to speak to us.

‘She was so nice and friendly and she is so pretty. She was so nice to us and said thank you for coming down to meet her.’

Francesca said: ‘We were both super excited to meet Harry and Meghan, I just can’t believe we did.

‘Our friends are going on be so jealous, we’re going to be taking about this forever.’

Another group of 15-year-old schoolgirls were not ashamed of skipping school to get the chance to meet the couple.

Emerson Yee held up a poster saying: ‘I gave up perfect school attendance to see you.’

She said: ‘They both said they liked my poster – but they told me not to miss school again.’

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Video: Harry and Meghan given first baby gifts in Australia

Harry and Meghan given first baby gifts as they kick off tour in Australia.

Britain's Prince Harry and his wife Meghan walk down the stairs of the iconic Opera House to meet people on October 16, 2018. - Prince Harry and Meghan have made their first appearances since announcing they are expecting a baby, kicking off a high-profile Pacific trip with a photo in front of Sydney's dazzling Opera House and posing with koalas. (Photo by STR / AFP)STR/AFP/Getty Images
Harry and Meghan walk down the stairs of the iconic Opera House to meet the crowd of people (Picture: AFP/Getty)
Australia's Governor General Peter Cosgrove gives the Duke and Duchess of Sussex a toy kangaroo - with a baby - at Admiralty House in Sydney on the first day of the royal couple's visit to Australia. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Tuesday October 16, 2018. Harry and Meghan will take part in 76 engagements in Australia, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand over their 16-day trip to the Pacific region. See PA story ROYAL Tour. Photo credit should read: Phil Noble/PA Wire
Earlier in the day Australia’s Governor General Peter Cosgrove gave Meghan and Harry their first baby gifts (Picture: PA)
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex meets member's of the public during a walk about outside the Opera House in Sydney, Australia, Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2018. Prince Harry and his wife Meghan are on a 16-day tour of Australia and the South Pacific (Paul Edwards/Pool via AP)
Thousands of people turned out outside the Sydney Opera House to meet Meghan and Harry (Picture: AP)

Harry, 34, and Meghan, 37, are on a 16-day tour of Australia, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand with 76 engagements scheduled.

Kensington Palace said the planned tour would not be altered because of former actress Meghan’s pregnancy.

A major part of their tour includes the Invictus Games, which starts on Saturday and includes competitors from 18 countries.

The sporting event, founded by Harry in 2014, gives sick and injured military personnel and veterans the opportunity to compete in a range of sports.

The announcement of the pregnancy confirms weeks of speculation from royal watchers about why Meghan was not joining Harry on his Sydney Harbor Bridge climb set for Friday.

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