Years before Britney Spears claimed her ex Justin Timberlake cheated on her, the *NSYNC member was caught sneaking around with another famous singer.
Paparazzi snapped photos of Timberlake and Nicole Appleton of the English girl group All Saints heading back to his hotel in London after a night out in 2000.
A newspaper clipping from the time, which fans have resurfaced on social media, shows both Timberlake, then 19, and Appleton, then 25, ducking down in the back seat of a car in an unsuccessful attempt to hide from photographers.
Shutterbugs also captured the pair walking together as they made their way from the Mayfair Club to the St. Martins Lane hotel, where the “Bye Bye Bye” crooner was reported to be staying.
The story, headlined “Nic and guy act so shy,” noted that Timberlake was still “dating American teen temptress Britney Spears” when the pictures were taken.
Years later, one of Spears’ former makeup artists claimed the pop star couple had “some issues” after the stealthy outing.
“She had her questions about who he was with because stuff would be out in the press. They were very famous,” Julianne Kaye told the Mirror in 2022. “So he’d be out with some girl from All Saints, and she’d get very jealous.”
The gossip resurfaced after TMZ reported Wednesday that Spears, 41, claims in her forthcoming memoir, “The Woman in Me,” that Timberlake, 42, had been unfaithful to her during their three-year relationship.
The Princess of Pop writes that the “Mirrors” crooner allegedly stepped out on her with another celebrity, whom she reportedly chose not to name because the woman now has a family.
While it is unclear whether Appleton, 48, is the unidentified star, she shares son Gene, 22, with her ex-husband, Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher, and daughter Skipper, 3, with her current spouse, Stephen Haines.
Timberlake also has a family of his own: He married Jessica Biel in 2012, and they share sons Silas, 8, and Phineas, 3.
“The Woman in Me” is filled with bombshells, including Spears’ revelation that she had an abortion in 2000 because Timberlake “definitely wasn’t happy about the pregnancy” and “didn’t want to be a father.”
The former Mouseketeers broke up in 2002, the same year the boy bander publicly implied the “Toxic” singer had cheated on him. She never confirmed or denied the chatter.
Spears shares sons Sean Preston, 18, and Jayden, 17, with her ex-husband Kevin Federline.
Reps for Timberlake and Appleton did not immediately respond to Pvnew’s requests for comment.
