‘Jools And I Have Struggled At Times'

Jamie Oliver opens up on the toughest year of his life – and how his family have helped him through those challenges

- Vicki Powers

By his own admission, Jamie Oliver has had a tough year. Although his 5 Ingredients book was the UK’s best-selling cookbook of 2017 and the accompanying TV show sold to more than 120 countries, the celebrity chef’s magic touch has faltered a bit when it comes to his restaurants. A slump in the high street has affected his Jamie’s Italian chain of eateries, forcing him to close 12 of the 37.

So it’s a slightly wearier Jamie we meet at his trendy open-plan offices in north London. He admits he’s been working evenings and weekends since the restaurant group got into trouble last October, but he still manages to be the funny, upbeat celebrity chef we know of old.

He’s determined that Jamie’s Italian will flourish again, as he celebrates 10 years since the first one opened.

‘I’m very proud of having survived 10 years,’ says Jamie, 43, settling onto a sofa. ‘Restaurant years are like dog years, so 10 years is a very long time. It’s been a dark time, but I’ve got enough light in my life to balance the not-so-nice darkness.’

The light in Jamie’s life to which he refers, and which lightens his load after a long day spent crunching numbers in the office, is family.

‘I go home and see my kids, and that always cheers me up,’ he says, referring to his five children with wife Jools – Daisy, 16, Poppy, 15, Petal, nine, Buddy, eight, and 22-month-old River. Home is a big, period house with a large garden in Highgate, north London.