JAMIE’S BURNT OUT BURNT OUT!
Why 2018 took its toll
A horror 2018 takes its toll
It was his own annus horribilis. For chef Jamie Oliver, 2018 was a complete writeoff after multiple business failings and a personal loss of $40 million.
And now, the foodie has opened up about the year that was, admitting he thinks of it as “the worst time of my life” and revealing that his business
struggles took a toll on his mental health.
Speaking to a British newspaper, he says, “I think I’m generally known for being very optimistic, bubbly and definitely glass half full. But one day I felt sad. And for a bit too long. It wasn’t depression, but I was a bit stupid. I wasn’t sleeping much.”
Unable to switch off after a long day at the office and trying to deal with the collapse of his restaurant empire, Jamie (43) found himself glued to his smartphone at all hours of the night.
“It caught up with me,” he nods. “The phone was pinging. Ping, ping. I was going to bed at 1am consistently and getting up at 4am or 5am.”
However, after a strict sleep pattern overhaul – he’s now religiously
in bed by 10pm in a quiet, dark and cold room – things are looking brighter for the Naked Chef.
To start off 2019, he and wife Jools (44), who have five children, have purchased a $12 million, 16th-century mansion to serve as the new family home.
The lavish Essex estate, which dates back to 1570, is surrounded by 70 acres of land and also features a ‘haunted’ rocking horse which, according to a pal, initially scared Jamie.
“It’s an amazing place and the whole family fell in love with it at the first viewing... The only thing Jamie wasn’t sold on was the top-floor nursery – there’s a rocking horse there which, legend has it, starts rocking and creaking during the night.”
After 2018, we’re sure Jamie can deal with a wee ghost!