Prepare to be frightened! Princess Beatrice looks completely unrecognisable in silver hair and leather

Princess Beatrice often gives Princess Catherine a run for her money in the style stakes, but for an outing in the capital, the Princess of York looked almost unrecognisable, a far cry from her usual stylish self.

Photographed in Mayfair, the mother-of-two swapped out her demure ensembles for a black leather mini dress, accessorised with a military-inspired black and silver jacket.

The jacket bore a striking resemblance to the red military jackets worn by her mother, Sarah Ferguson – perhaps she took inspiration from her eclectic wardrobe

The Princess added towering velvet heels to her ensemble, and while her outfit was a big change from her usual royal look, it was her hair we couldn't take our eyes off.

Beatrice is known for her beautiful, tumbling auburn hair, styled into perfect waves, but she'd covered her signature hair with a long, cascading silver wig, topped with a day of the dead inspired cat mask.

Why are you dressed so scary?

Princess Beatrice's unexpected outfit was for a good cause, with the royal donning the hair-raising ensemble for the UNICEF Halloween Ball in October 2016. We have to say that while we rather like the look, we understand why Beatrice reverted to her usual style shortly after the event.

Beatrice's costumes over the years

This isn't the first time Princess Beatrice has stepped out in public in fancy dress. She ran the London Marathon dressed as a caterpillar in 2010, and in 2007 she channelled her royal ancestors, donning a period costume to appear in The Young Victoria, a film her mother, Sarah Ferguson, helped to produce.

Her younger sister, Princess Eugenie, loves fancy dress, too. Most famously, she joined her husband, Jack Brooksbank, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle for a post-apocalypse-themed Halloween party, wearing scary, Mad Max-inspired outfits.

Both Meghan and Eugenie went all out for the occasion, with Meghan wearing a belt made from bullets. Prince Harry got equally into the theme, though he did write in his memoir Spare that he hates fancy dress parties – not surprising after the scandal he was embroiled in when he wore a nazi costume, complete with a swastika armband in 2005 when he was 20.

Since then, the royal has played it safe when it comes to costumes, and we can't say we blame him!