OLIVER POCKETS £5.6M DESPITE COVID PROFIT HIT

JAMIE Oliver pocketed around £5.6m in dividends from his media and restaurant empire last year despite profits taking a hit from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Two companies controlled by the TV chef paid out £1.5m and £4.1m respectively in 2021 despite earnings for the year dropping to £9m from £11.8m the year before.

The payout was more than three times the amount paid the previous year when dividends totalled £1.5m as the chef’s empire battled with the initial wave of pandemic lockdowns.

Oliver, 47, said the group had experienced a ‘challenging year’ as travel restrictions, temporary restaurant closures and social distancing measures brought in to contain the spread of Covid-19 hit footfall at its restaurants and disrupted the production of cookery shows.

Despite this, the company flagged that its back catalogue of cookbooks had delivered a ‘strong performance’ during the year.

‘2021 was another challenging year for the business, but I’m proud of what we achieved as a team,’ said father of five Oliver, whose net worth is estimated to be around £327m.