6th June 2025

Jamie Oliver has revealed the huge challenges he faced at school due to being dyslexic. Jamie says he was called a “stupid dunce” and his experiences at school left him feeling “worthless, stupid, and thick.”

Now, Jamie is fronting a new documentary, Jamie's Dyslexia Revolution. The hour-long documentary will see Jamie examine whether schools in the UK are doing enough to support dyslexic children.

Speaking to The Sunday Times, the celebrity chef reflected on his own time at school. He said: “I'm unpacking quite a lot of stuff and I'm oversharing with you because I've got to f***ing work this s**t out, I thought I'd buried it but it's hitting a nerve.

“I didn't have any extra time in exams, there were no strategies, just a bit of extra tutoring help.

“There was no robust dyslexic knowledge then.”

Jamie says that it was his love of cooking that saved him, he explained: “I didn't tell mum, dad or the teachers. I just bottled it up inside. The kitchen saved me. I knew I had something to offer. I knew I wasn't a useless piece of s***.”

Alongside the documentary, Jamie is campaigning for teachers to receive more neurodiversity training and for earlier dyslexia screening to be introduced to schools.

Discussing his campaign, Jamie said: “Not acknowledging or allowing a six, seven or eight-year-old to express their intelligence… that’s kind of child abuse.

“This is heavy, because neurodivergent kids are falling between the cracks. They end up resenting education, which leads to anger, frustration, poor health, crime, prison and all the horrible things you don’t want to think about.

He added: “I ran from school thinking, ‘F*** you,’ but I was lucky because I had the kitchen.”

Jamie’s Dyslexia Revolution will air soon on Channel 4.

News from Mail Online

Image source: jamieoliver/Instagram