The mystery man in Beatrice’s Bentley is a former high-flying lawyer and fitness trainer to the stars who counts Floyd Mayweather and Robbie Williams among his celebrity friends.
Princess Beatrice was spotted leaving a swanky West Hollywood restaurant on Friday night with British business and fitness guru James Williams, MailOnline can reveal.
Mr Williams, originally from Walton on the Hill in Surrey, has been working in the US for several years as a business consultant and last year became CEO for Floyd Mayweather’s new gym business venture Mayweather Boxing & Fitness, which aims to create 500 gyms worldwide in the next five years.
The fitness guru pictured in Mexico with female companion Lucinda Aragon – the pair have also visited Hawaii together
Princess Beatrice was pictured being dropped off in a Bentley by James Williams after a night out in Los Angeles
Mr Williams, a Leeds University graduate, enjoys a close friendship with former boxing world champion Floyd Mayweather
The exact relationship between Mr Williams and Beatrice is unknown but there is no suggestion it is romantic.
The 29-year-old Princess has been single since she split from her boyfriend of ten years less than 18 months ago – only to see him get engaged to his new girlfriend soon after.
It is believed the pair enjoyed a meal at high end Italian Madeo, a restaurant in West Hollywood frequented by A-list celebrities, before leaving in a £100,000 blue Bentley.
Mr Williams graduated from Leeds University in 2001 before attending law school in Nottingham and joining Magic Circle law firm Clifford Chance as a corporate lawyer.
He then moved to management consultancy Bain & Co, advising clients on business strategies for eight years while also completing a masters degree at the University of Pennsylvania.
Mr Williams is also co-founder of business consultancy Ivy Venture Partners and has worked with stars including Britney Spears, Snoop Dogg and Eva Longoria.
His Instagram account reveals he is a fan of the high life, posting images of himself at basketball games in the US, surfing off the beaches of California and swimming with dolphins.
He enjoys a close friendship with former boxing world champion Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather, with whom he has been pictured training, and has also worked with stars such as singer Robbie Williams.
In a smart black jacket, the princess looked relaxed and happy, but her tall and handsome companion wore a grey hoodie, while the vehicle appears to have been hired from local dealership Specialty Car Collection
The pair are believed to have eaten at Madeo in West Hollywood, an Italian restaurant frequented by A-list celebrities
Beatrice, 29, is pursuing a career in New York, where she has started her own business consultancy, but is often spotted out with friends in LA
The mystery hunk spotted in a Bentley with Princess Beatrice is fitness guru and British businessman James Williams
Speaking from the family’s £1million, five-bedroom detached home in Walton-on-the-Hill, his mother Patricia Williams said she was taken aback to see photographs of her son with Princess Beatrice, admitting: ‘I had quite a surprise.’
However, she added: ‘I can’t really make any kind of comment until I’ve spoken to him and I haven’t done that yet.’
A neighbour said: ‘I know Patricia very well and know her son lives and works over in Los Angeles.’
His Instagram account reveals he is a fan of the high life, and he has been pictured with a string of celebrities
Mr Williams, originally from Walton on the Hill in Surrey, has been working in the US for several years as a business consultant and last year became CEO for Floyd Mayweather’s new gym business venture Mayweather Boxing & Fitness
Mr Williams was snapped on Friday night dressed casually in a grey hoodie next to the Princess who was in a smart black jacket.
According to the sticker on the front of the car, the Bentley came from Specialty Car Collection, a dealership based in West Hollywood which has been running for 30 years.
The firm offers luxury and exotic cars for sale and to lease, with the presence of the sticker suggesting it may have been a short-term deal.
Specialty Car Collection hosts classic vehicles including Bentleys, Ferraris, Lamborghinis and Rolls-Royces.
Vehicles currently for sale include Porsches and Land Rovers, with the most expensive car a 2016 Ferrari 488 GTB Coupe available for around £215,000.
The businessman graduated from Leeds University in 2001 before attending law school in Nottingham and joining Clifford Chance as a corporate lawyer
The mystery hunk spotted with Beatrice after a meal in Los Angeles on Friday night can be revealed as James Williams
Beatrice is pursuing a career in New York where she is working on her own business consultancy but is often spotted partying with friends in LA.
She is currently Vice President of Partnerships & Strategy at Afiniti.com, a Washington DC-based computer software company.
Her outing in LA was the end of a busy week for Beatrice, with the princess appearing at a charity ball with her mother in London just days earlier.
Beatrice accompanied the Duchess of York to the British Heart Foundations Beating Hearts Ball at The Guildhall in the City.
The 29-year-old Royal put on a stylish display as she joined mother Sarah Ferguson and friend Wilfred Frost, son of the late David Frost.
She was also joined by distant cousin Lady Amelia Windsor, granddaughter of the Duke of Kent and rising model.
The fitness guru and former Magic Circle lawyer spotted training with former boxing champion Floyd Mayweather
Beatrice is believed to have been single since she broke up with American boyfriend Dave Clark in August 2016 after ten years together, reportedly when she gave him an ultimatum to marry, although sources suggested they were ‘drifting apart’ before the split.
Months later the 33-year-old became engaged to his new girlfriend, but the former couple appear to remain on good terms with Beatrice thought to have been invited to the wedding.
Friends said the Royal was ‘super happy’ for her ex, who was described by her mother Sarah ‘Fergie’ Ferguson as ‘Mr Smiley’.
Beatrice is also expected to be maid of honour at her 27-year-old sister Eugenie’s wedding in October to wine merchant Jack Brooksbank.
Mr Brooksbank is a former waiter who spurned university and a job in the City to set himself up in the pub trade.
Once nicknamed ‘barman Jack’ in his Chelsea social circle, has worked his way up through some of the capital’s trendiest bars and nightspots.
But the 31-year-old has moved to put any idea of his being a party animal behind him in recent years, setting up a respectable wine merchants business.
Fashion experts have suggested Beatrice has been given ‘a new lease of life’ since her sister’s engagement judging on the outfits she has been wearing.
Celebrity stylist Rochelle White told MailOnline: ‘I feel that Beatrice is coming into her own and embracing her new style.
‘I think her sister getting engaged has giving her a new lease of life and a way for her to become more comfortable and confident in her own style and body.
‘It’s nice to see her embrace her style choices with more edgy looks such as leather, lingerie and shorter skirts.’
She is believed to have been single since she broke up with American boyfriend Dave Clark in August 2016 (pictured together in July 2014)
Mr Clark, pictured with Beatrice when they were together, has since become engaged advertising executive Lynn Anderson but the Royal is said to be ‘super happy’ for her ex and remains friends with him
She added that prior to her makeover, Beatrice tended to opt for more ‘conservative’ looks that didn’t suit her age.
Beatrice was previously pictured with a different mystery man in December on a night out with her sister and fiance.
They attended an exclusive Soho House members’ club in what onlookers described as a ‘double date’.
The venue is one of the locations believed to be where Prince Harry wined and dined Meghan Markle in the early stages of their relationship.
It has since emerged that Mr Brooksbank is very distantly related to Eugenie and Beatrice.
His father’s great-grandfather is Viscount Thomas Coke, a former Earl of Leicester and a peer in the 19th century.
Viscount Coke, who died in 1909, is also the great, great-grandfather of Fergie.
Buckingham Palace refused to comment on her night out in LA.