Who needs enemies! Sydney’s elite rocked by Pip Edwards’ new romance with the ex of her high-profile best friend as they’re seen getting VERY intimate at the beach

Her list of exes includes such colourful personalities as fashion mogul Dan Single, cricketer Michael Clarke and Grilld’ founder-turned-extortion victim Geoff Bainbridge.

So we weren’t surprised to learn that Pip Edwards’ latest boyfriend is another big name in the eastern suburbs.

Her new man is Joshua Clapp, an interior designer and bar owner best known as the face of Steel and Stitch, a construction firm that specialises in hospitality venues.

And, of course, it wouldn’t be a Pip Edwards romance without a smidge of scandal.

You see, Clapp happens to be the ex-partner of Edwards’ best friend Leah Simmons – the well-known Sydney personal trainer. And while Simmons and Clapp, who share a teenage son, have been separated for many years, we hear the relationship has raised more than a few eyebrows among the Harbour City’s elite social set.

When approached for comment on Monday outside her workout studio – which her ex designed and built for her – Simmons simply laughed and said ‘no comment’.

In the first sighting as a couple, our snapper caught Edwards, 44, and Clapp, 52, looking particularly cosy during a romantic day at the beach on Friday.

The 44-year-old couldn’t keep her hands off her new man as they frolicked in the water before returning to the shore for a snuggle.

Edwards left little to the imagination in a skimpy bikini top and G-string bottoms as she wrapped her arms possessively around Clapp.

After cooling off in the ocean, she stretched her body across a towel and leaned on his back, at one stage reaching her arms over to stroke his torso.

Edwards is believed to be good mates with Simmons, who is the founder of workout website KΛΛIΛΛ. Simmons and Clapp are co-parents to son Ryder, who is in his mid-teens. Simmons also has a younger daughter, Lucky, from a subsequent relationship.

In February 2021, Edwards was seen spending time with Simmons and Lucky just months before the trainer announced her split from then-husband Adrian Reed.

Despite their separation, Simmons and Clapp are, by all accounts, very close. The two went to lunch with their son at Bondi Icebergs in May this year, and regularly post about one another on Instagram.

Despite being more low-profile than Edwards’ usual type, Clapp isn’t totally free from controversy.

In 2023, he was slapped with an AVO to protect nightclub boss Julian Tobias after the two men had a scuffle on stage at gentleman’s club Harem. Clapp later pleaded guilty to assault and was sentenced to a 12-month community correction order.

Awkwardly, Edwards also looks to be friends with Tobias, who owns floating day club The Island and Sussudio in Potts Point. Not only does she follow him on Instagram, but the pair was seen partying together on New Year’s Day in Bondi in January 2023. 

Pip was last linked to multimillionaire businessman Geoff Bainbridge, who is best known for co-founding the popular burger chain Grill’d.

She only recently returned to Australia from a trip to America. She was there for work, having recently stepped down from P.E Nation to take on a senior role at Ksubi – the brand where she got her start in the fashion industry.

Mr Bainbridge, 52, had joined Pip on her U.S. trip, but it looks like their romance was just a flash in the pan, because she moved swiftly on with Clapp shortly after getting back to Sydney.

Mr Bainbridge made headlines for all the wrong reasons more than two years ago when he resigned as the chief executive of alcohol business Lark Distilling after he was caught on video smoking from a glass pipe.

Known for being a prominent early investor in Grill’d, he’d left the business in 2015, shortly before the video was filmed.

At the time of the scandal, he explained the footage had been captured after a night out in south-east Asia. He claimed he was the victim of an extortion attempt, in which blackmailers threatened to release the video publicly unless he paid them off.

However, doubt was later cast on his claims, with The Australian publishing photos it said indicated the video was not filmed in Asia seven years earlier but in the bedroom of his $3million Melbourne home, which he had only purchased 18 months earlier.

Real estate photos of Mr Bainbridge’s home in Middle Park revealed it shared the same unique light fitting and white wooden Venetian blinds as those seen in the video.

Other distinctive features such as the room’s ornate ceiling décor and a distinctive bedhead were also seen in several unpublished videos obtained by The Australian.

Daily Mail Australia does not suggest that Mr Bainbridge was not telling the truth, simply that a discrepancy was raised.

When asked about the apparent discrepancy in his story, Mr Bainbridge told The Australian ‘no comment’ at the time.

A source told Daily Mail Australia last month that Edwards and Bainbridge were ‘dating’. But it appears the relationship fizzled out soon afterwards. 

Edwards is also known for her high-profile relationship with former Australian cricketer Michael Clarke. The went their separate ways in early 2021.

However, in January 2023, Clarke was sensationally accused by his then-girlfriend Jade Yarbrough of sleeping with Edwards after their break-up.

The public bust-up in a Noosa park was caught on video and later sold to the press.

A remorseful Clarke later took full responsibility for what happened. For her part, Edwards claimed she had been ‘blatantly lied to’.