Genre Documentary Original language(s) English No. of episodes 5 | Country of origin United Kingdom No. of seasons 1 | |
Narrated by Mark Halliley
Jamie Oliver | ||
Jamie's Kitchen is a five-part British documentary television series that aired on Channel 4 from 5 November to 12 December 2002. It follows chef Jamie Oliver as he attempts to train a group of fifteen disadvantaged youth, who will — if they complete the course — be offered jobs at Oliver's new restaurant Fifteen. The series was executive produced by Peter Moore for Talkback Productions, and has since spawned several others along similar lines.
Contents
Original show
Of the original fifteen chefs, five went on to secure cooking careers. Elisa Roche (the only girl to graduate), Ralph Johnson, Tim Siadatan, Ben Arthur and Warren Fleet all ended up working in some of London's best restaurants. Johnny Broadfoot, one of the younger original Fifteen chefs (who graduated after the previous five), returned to Sydney, Australia as head chef of his co-owned restaurant/bar El Beau Room in Manly, which opened in July 2013, and closed in 2016.
An article about bullying in the catering industry, written by Elisa Roche for The Guardian, now forms part of the national curriculum. "If you can't stand the heat... get some balls" is now used as a study paper by English GCSE students. It is the only English GCSE study paper containing the word "bollocks". As of January 2013 Elisa is Showbiz Editor for the Daily Express.
One died at the age of 26.
Fifteen Foundation
Fifteen is the name of the restaurants and the supporting charitable foundation. The foundation's mission is to inspire disadvantaged youth, including those with drug or alcohol problems, the unemployed and the homeless, to believe in themselves and the possibility of becoming chefs.
The foundation aims to turn Fifteen into a global social enterprise brand. December 2004 saw the opening of a second restaurant in Amsterdam, with others following in Cornwall (May 2006) and Fifteen Melbourne, Australia (September 2006).
Return to Jamie's Kitchen
The two-part Return to Jamie's Kitchen aired on Channel 4 on 16 September and 23 September 2003, and follows the fortunes of the restaurant after its opening.
Jamie's Kitchen Australia
Jamie's Kitchen Australia premiered on Network Ten on 14 September 2006. Oliver visited Australia briefly to launch the series, and then returned to London, retaining overall control, but delegating management of the project in Melbourne to old friend, Melburnian chef Tobie Puttock. The series followed the training of a group of 16- to 24-year-old Australians to become chefs in the new Melbourne Fifteen restaurant.
Jamie's Chef
The four-part Jamie's Chef premiered on Channel 4 on 31 January 2007. Five years and fifty trainees since Jamie's Kitchen, this series aims to help the winning trainee establish their own restaurant at The Cock, a pub near Braintree in Essex. The charitable Fifteen Foundation retains ownership of the property and has provided a £125,000 loan for the winner, Aaron Craze, to refurbish the establishment. Prior to airing, this was announced in the press as Cutting the Apron Strings.