TV chef read first book at 33 despite becoming best-selling author

Daily Mirror

09-06-2025

While he's known to have written over 20 cookbooks, becoming the bestselling non-fiction author in the UK, Jamie Oliver admits he still struggles to read because of his dyslexia.
Jamie Oliver is the second best-selling British author behind J.K. Rowling - but he's never been much of a reader due to his dyslexia. In fact, he didn't read his first book until his early thirties.
In his latest documentary, Jamie's Dyslexia Revolution, the celebrity chef, author and outspoken advocate is taking his lifelong fight with dyslexia public in a bold new way.
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With raw honesty and righteous anger, Jamie Oliver lifts the lid on how deeply the system is failing neurodivergent children - and confronts Secretary of State for Education Bridget Phillipson in a fierce campaign.
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'Our young people deserve better,' he says in his compelling feature, 'We want truly inclusive schools where every child can thrive. That change is a long time overdue.'
For Jamie, the fight is personal. Though now a bestselling author of over 20 cookbooks and a household name, his own school experience was shaped by struggles, shame and silence.
As a child, Jamie was placed in special needs classes for five years. 'I really struggled to read in primary school,' he says, 'I read my first [book] when I was about 33.' Leaving education behind was a relief. 'When I left school, it was, 'good riddance to you,'' he admits.
'The memories of no books, spelling errors, crosses repeated. I expected very little of myself because success in school is built on things a dyslexic brain isn't good at.'
READ MORE: 'I made one change to my meals and lost weight, felt fuller and cut down my caffeine'
Now 50, Jamie still grapples with challenges most take for granted. 'My inner voice isn't as confident when I'm reading,' he says. 'My eyes aren't really tracking well. I'm used to it. Some days are better than others. I'm better when I'm less tired.'
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Despite the hurdles, Jamie has built a wildly successful career and a happy personal haven. Married to former model and writer Juliette Norton, he's a proud father of five.
But fatherhood brought some uncomfortable reckonings. 'I knew things were bad when my own children were reading better than me,' he says. He also realised he wasn't alone in feeling out of place in school.
'School was tough because I didn't get it, now seeing kids and families go through that same pain in 2025 makes me angry. I didn't realise how big this was and how upsetting it is.'
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That anger became fuel for Jamie's Dyslexia Revolution, a hard-hitting, eye-opening journey through the lived experiences of neurodivergent people across the UK. He's not alone in the crusade.
Celebrity friends join him to share their own painful experiences. Holly Willoughby recalls how her self-worth was chipped away by red-inked spelling tests.
'I was terrible at spelling,' Holly says, 'I knew that because I'd always get really poor results at spelling tests. When I'd get my homework back, there'd be red pen all over it where there would be 'silly' mistakes.''
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Reality star and entrepreneur Jamie Laing echoes the frustration and daily challenges dyslexic individuals face. 'I don't understand how people can write down a word they've heard,' he says.
'I don't understand how the words go, to the point where some of them look upside down and backwards.' At school, his struggles often led to punishment rather than support. 'I would get in trouble a lot,' he says, 'I would be in detention because I was frustrated.'
Dyslexia, as defined by the NHS, is a common learning difficulty that primarily affects reading, writing and spelling. But its impact is far more widespread - touching memory, processing, self-esteem and even long-term outcomes in life.
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It's estimated that up to one in every ten people in the UK has dyslexia, though many go undiagnosed for years, if at all. And while it has nothing to do with intelligence, the stigma and misunderstandings persist.
Jamie Oliver knows that first-hand. 'It didn't feel like (dyslexia doesn't affect intelligence) when I was in school,' he says, 'A lot of dyslexic kids don't feel that. Those feelings can affect your start in life.'
Cooking became a lifeline for Jamie. 'Cooking really saved me. I felt free to create in the kitchen. Cooking gave me the confidence to not go too dark with dyslexia,' he says.
'Being extracted out of class for a special needs class isn't cool. It came with a bit of a tag, a dunce's hat. Before long, the feelings of not being enough or being dumb, even in primary school, were in my psyche.'