Dominic West's wife 'devastated' as photos emerge of him kissing Downton Abbey star Lily James

Dominic West's wife is 'shocked, heartbroken and devastated' as pictures emerge of him in a passionate embrace with Lily James. Photo / Getty Images

Dominic West's wife is "shocked, heartbroken and devastated" after he was photographed kissing Lily James.

The actor, 50, and the Mamma Mia! star, 31, were spotted cuddling up to one another in Rome, and West was photographed kissing James' neck at a cafe.

The pair are set to star in Emily Mortimer's adaptation of Nancy Mitford's novel The Pursuit Of Love, and met in 2011 during a production of Othello at Sheffield's Crucible theatre.

Dominic West and wife Catherine Fitzgerald. Photo / Getty Images

Dominic is best known for playing Noah Solloway in TV series The Affair, which explores the emotional effects of an extramarital relationship.

In real life, the actor has been married to Irish landscape designer and aristocrat Catherine since 2010, who he has four children with.

A female friend of Catherine who reportedly came to console her at the family home near Chippenham, Wiltshire, told the Daily Mail that she has seen the pictures and is "devastated" as she thought they were "very much together" with a "good marriage".

"Catherine has seen the pictures and she's devastated. I came over to speak with her as soon as I knew about them," she said.

"Catherine has been trying to speak with Dominic but he's not answering his phone. She's totally shocked because she didn't know anything was going on. They were very much together, so this is completely out of the blue."

"She thought they had a good marriage and now it's probably over. That's how she feels right now but the two of them need to speak but at the moment, she's lost for words."

Earlier this week it was confirmed James had split up with her boyfriend Matt Smith after a failed attempt to rekindle their relationship in lockdown following an on-off five-year romance.