Jamie Oliver’s devoted wife Jools has been a constant support throughout his career, but they once faced a rocky period that left the TV chef questioning their future.
The 48-year-old has become a beloved figure in the UK, sharing his mouth-watering recipes with audiences and readers for over two decades. He first rose to fame in his early twenties with his BBC series The Naked Chef and years after his television debut, he embarked on a mission to improve children’s diets with the launch of his contentious Feed Me Better campaign.
Off-screen, his own children are his top priority. He and Jools are parents to five kids, each with unique names: Poppy Honey Rosie, Daisy Boo Pamela, Petal Blossom Rainbow, Buddy Bear Maurice, and River Rocket Blue Dallas.
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In 2019, the family of seven relocated to a £6m 16th-century mansion in Essex, complete with a 70-acre estate featuring a pool, tennis court, and its own allotment. The dedicated father has been candid about his family life, including his enduring marriage to Juliette Norton, affectionately known as Jools, where he has openly discussed the highs and lows that led them into a “rut”.
(Image: UK Press via Getty Images)
The pair exchanged vows in 2000 after initially meeting as teenagers when they were just 17 and 18. Given their high-profile lifestyle, it’s no surprise that they’ve had to navigate issues related to jealousy.
Despite Jools relocating to Tokyo for a three-month stint, Jamie was not deterred by the distance. He wooed his future wife with romantic love letters.
”When I was 17 I worked in Tokyo for three months and every single day Jamie sent me a letter or a fax without fail!” Jools revealed on her Instagram account.
(Image: joolsoliver/Instagram)
Upon her return, they became inseparable, renting a small flat in Hammersmith while Jamie slaved away in the kitchen at the renowned River Cafe. However, after two decades of wedded bliss and five kids, they’ve picked up a few life lessons.
In 2021, Jamie confessed to the Australian Women’s Weekly: ”I think you learn to love in lots of different ways. You learn to love the person you married but also, it’s exciting because the rollercoaster of growing, becoming parents, getting older, having grey hairs and wrinkles, you can love all those bits. You don’t just love one bit.
“I feel very lucky. I started dating Jools when I was 18. She’s been a really solid and utterly important part of my life and my job’s quite exciting.”
However, their journey hasn’t always been smooth, with jealousy and rumours of infidelity cropping up more than once.
(Image: GC Images)
Stay-at-home mum Jools was left holding the baby as Jamie’s insane work schedule caused a bit of a storm at home. Despite promising to ditch the limelight by 2008, Jamie was still playing ‘weekend dad’ by 2011, and even confessed their marriage hit a rough patch, saying: “I’m not a worrier but she is a worrier. I don’t need that and she doesn’t need that, so we’re in a bit of a rut.”
Meanwhile, Jools wasn’t shy about admitting they had their fair share of squabbles. Jools previously admitted that they “bicker all the time” and her friends couldn’t believe how much they argued.
But it wasn’t just the bickering Jools also fessed up to some serious snooping on her hubby amid fears of infidelity. She previously told The Telegraph that she often checked his email and his Twitter account and everything seemed fine.
(Image: Press Association)
She was on high alert due to Jamie’s early days of fame when he revealed he had groupies galore. In 2018, Jamie admitted that his wife had once suspected him of having an affair due to his frequent and mysterious disappearances but he told Closer magazine that he was digging up courgettes in his garden.
Jools, on the other hand, has been candid about the emotional pain of experiencing five miscarriages. Two occurred before she gave birth to her son River in 2016, and the other three happened subsequently.
During Baby Loss Awareness Week in 2020, Jools commemorated “our own 5 little stars we never got to hold in our arms xxx”.
Despite enduring such difficult times, the couple drew strength from one another and decided to renew their vows last year in a ceremony vastly different from their first wedding. When the day arrived in April, following 23 years of being together, Jamie announced to his fans that the joyous event took place on a Maldivian beach.
(Image: Soneva Fush)
Sharing the delightful news, Jamie posted: “Yep, after 23 years together, we thought it would be a special moment to celebrate renewing our wedding vows before the kids all start leaving the nest.” He shared joyfully.
‘He continued: ‘It was really special, funny and romantic with the words in the ceremony making more sense having come this far together. It seems like a blink since the first wedding which we kept very private apart from the paparazzi at the village church we thought it would be a happy and joyful moment to share with you all this Easter.
“We’ve always dreamed of going to the Maldives and it was just as you would have dreamed, simply amazing.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
