Lily James and married actor Dominic West surprised onlookers when they were pictured passionately kissing while dining al fresco during a romantic break in Rome on Sunday.
The actor, 50, and the Mamma Mia! star, 31, didn’t seem to mind who saw them as they cuddled up to one another and shared a ride on an electric scooter while taking in the sights, tenderly touching throughout the day.
Dominic is best known for playing Noah Solloway in Showtime drama, The Affair, which explores the emotional effects of an extramarital relationship between his character and a younger woman who catches his eye, named Alison Bailey (Ruth Wilson).
In real life, the actor has been married to Irish landscape designer and aristocrat Catherine FitzGerald since 2010 – no split has been publicly announced, so his relationship status with Lily remains unclear, but he was not wearing his wedding ring.
PICTURE EXCLUSIVE: Lily James, 31, and married The Affair star Dominic West, 50, were pictured passionately kissing and cuddling as they shared scooter ride during a romantic weekend in Rome on Sunday
Shock: They didn’t seem to mind who saw them as Dominic kissed Lily’s neck during an al fresco lunch date with their manager Angharad Wood
Dominic and Catherine have four children together; daughter Dora, 13, son Senan, 12, son Francis, 11, and daughter Christabel, seven.
The actor also has another daughter Martha, 22, with former girlfriend Polly Astor.
On Thursday, it was announced that Lily, 31, has split from The Crown star Matt Smith, 37, for good after a failed attempt to rekindle their relationship in lockdown following an on-off five year romance.
A source told MailOnline that Dominic and Lily spent two nights in a suite at the top Hotel De La Ville with a panoramic view over the whole city and just at two minutes walk from the Spanish steps.
Stroking her face: The pair looked very at ease with one another as they sat in the sunshine
Interesting: Dominic, 50, is best known for playing Noah Solloway in Showtime drama, The Affair, which explores the emotional effects of an extramarital relationship between his character and Alison Bailey (Ruth Wilson)
Working together? A source told MailOnline that Dominic and Lily spent two nights in a suite at the top Hotel De La Ville with a panoramic view over the whole city and just at two minutes walk from the Spanish steps
Making memories: Dominic stood close to Lily as she took pictures on their day of fun together
Close: At the end of lunch Lily sat next to Dominic and he couldn’t resist kissing her neck and stroking her as he displayed his wedding ring free hand
They only left the hotel for a few hours riding an electric scooter around the Spanish Steps and Piazza di Pietra.For lunch they joined their friend and mutual manager Angharad Wood at a downtown restaurant.
At the end of lunch Lily sat next to Dominic and he couldn’t resist kissing her neck and stroking her.
Lily looked incredible wearing a pretty floral summery dress which had a split going up the front and cream Yves Saint Laurent espadrilles.
Love: The actor has been married to Irish landscape designer and aristocrat Catherine FitzGerald, (left) since 2010 – no split has been announced – they are parents to Dora, 13, Senan, 12, Francis, 11, and Christabel, seven (pictured in 2017)
Done and dusted: On Thursday, it was announced that Lily, 31, has split from Matt Smith, 37, for good after a failed attempt to rekindle their relationship in lockdown following an on-off five year romance (pictured in 2015)
Role: Dominic is best known for playing Noah Solloway in Showtime drama, The Affair, which explores the emotional effects of an extramarital relationship between his character and Alison Bailey (Ruth Wilson)
Working together: Lily and Dominic are set to star in Emily Mortimer’s adaptation of Nancy Mitford’s celebrated novel The Pursuit Of Love for the BBC featuring Emily Beecham & Andrew Scott – filming began in July
Dominic kept things simple in a light blue shirt and blue jeans worn with New Balance trainers.
MailOnline has contacted a spokesperson for both Dominic West and Lily James.
The pair are set to star in Emily Mortimer’s adaptation of Nancy Mitford’s celebrated novel The Pursuit Of Love for the BBC featuring Emily Beecham & Andrew Scott and filming began in July.
Safety first: The pair kept their masks on throughout the day in keeping with Italian rules and regulations amid the coronavirus pandemic
Tender: Dominic placed his hand on the small of Lily’s back as the Downton star took yet more snaps
Whizzing around: Lily looked incredible wearing a pretty floral summery dress which had a split going up the front and cream Yves Saint Laurent espadrilles as she rode around the streets with the actor
Multi-tasking: She found time to check her phone as she and Dominic took in the sights
Saving the cash? Dominic took control throughout the day as they decided not to order two scooters for their tour
Check that out: The pair were very touchy-feely as Dominic pointed out a few things to his companion
The three part romantic comedy-drama about love and friendship is filming on location in the Bristol and Bath area and at The Bottle Yard Studios.
Set in Europe between the two World Wars, the story follows the adventures and misadventures of the charismatic and fearless Linda Radlett, played by Lily and her best friend and cousin Fanny Logan, played by Beecham.
But the pair go way back and starred in Othello together at Sheffield’s Crucible back in 2011. Lily played Desdemona when she was aged 22 and Dominic played Iago aged 41.
In May, Matt and Lily sparked rumours they’d reconciled after spending lockdown together at their joint home, having split last December after five years as a couple.
Getting along well: The pair have clearly clicked since filming on The Pursuit began in August and no doubt these pictures will help the ratings somewhat
Take a left! Dominic offered directions as Lily took over the steering for a little while
Well hydrated: Lily was loving life as the table got through a few bottles of white wine over lunch
She can’t keep her hands off it: Lily placed her hand around Dominic’s shoulder
She’s done this before: Lily posed for a few snaps for her manager’s little girl who was out of shot
A source told The Sun that Lily and Matt realised they’d be better off as friends after struggling to make their relationship work.
The source said: ‘They have gone back and forth this year trying to sort things out between them because they both have so much love for each other.
‘But unfortunately it just isn’t working and they have mutually decided to just close this chapter of their lives.
Oh! It has been reported that Lily and Matt realised they’d be better off as friends after struggling to make their relationship work and she wanted to date someone out of the spotlight
No hands! Lily appeared very trusting as she held onto her phone and not the handles
Quite romantic: Dominic continued to keep his arms around her as their day in the sun continued
Putting on a show: Lily showed off some serious moves as she had her photo taken
She likes that one: The actress had a big smile on her face as she took a look at the pictures
‘Now Lily just wants to find a normal guy who’s not in the spotlight because she found it quite tough being with another celebrity.’
Lily and Matt first met while filming Pride and Prejudice and Zombies in 2014, but didn’t confirm their romance until February the following year.
The couple parted ways in December 2019 after five years together, with reports claiming their romance had hit the buffers over Matt’s closeness to his The Crown co-star Claire Foy, 37.
In July, Lily was pictured enjoying a night out in London with Captain America star Chris Evans.
The Mamma Mia actress headed back to 39-year-old Chris’s London hotel, The Corinthia, in the same taxi as him, after partying into the early hours at private members’ venue, Mark’s Club in Mayfair just before 1am on Saturday.
Ouch! Lily was sporting a big bruise on her leg when she was pictured leaving a souvenir shop
Giggling: He was showing her his phone as the pair smiled their way through dinner
Lovely day: The group looked as though they were having the best time
Tasty: Lily licked her lips as she sipped on an espresso as the meal came to a close
Bottoms up! Lily was seen knocking back her glass of wine during lunch
Dominic recently hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons when he said he ‘jumped for joy’ after learning about President Trump’s coronavirus diagnosis.
GMB host Kate Garraway, 53, later revealed that Dominic ‘personally apologised’ to her after he said he ‘jumped for joy’ over Donald Trump’s COVID diagnosis.
Kate said Dominic claimed he ‘wasn’t aware’ her husband Derek Draper, also 53, was ‘still sick’ with coronavirus.
The Wire actor didn’t hold back when asked for his views on Trump’s positive result after the President, 74, had minimised the threat of the Covid-19 pandemic for months.
Appearing on video link from his Wiltshire home, Dominic was branded ‘evil’ and ‘disgusting’ after saying: ‘Well I did slightly leap in the air with joy.
‘I think the phrase is “what goes around comes around”. I just hope it doesn’t interfere with him being elected out of office that’s all.’
He was far from the only left-wing social media user to take delight in the President’s diagnosis with many advancing theories that his illness would harm his chances in the presidential election on November 3.
Kate questioned if Dominic was suggesting he wished Trump well on a personal level, but perhaps felt this was karmic given that Trump had previously downplayed the virus.
The actor’s words were somewhat tone deaf, given that Kate’s husband Derek, 53, has become the longest patient battling coronavirus in hospital in the UK as he enters his seventh month in hospital.
Dominic said: ‘Well there’s an element of schadenfreude I suppose.
‘I’m not a fan of his, as you can probably tell, and I just hope Biden stays healthy and gets the presidency as quickly as possible. I think Trump is a catastrophe for America and the world.’
Move up a bit: The pair did well to both fit on the scooter as they traversed across the cobbled streets
Taking it easy: They carefully looked left and right before heading out into the main road
Gasping: At one point, Dominic removed his mask for a second as he got some air
Who need to walk? They were very much into their mode of transport on the day