Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver reveals the ‘brutal’ and ‘unforgiving’ effects of lockdown

Jamie Oliver has revealed the ‘brutal’ effects of the COVID-19 lockdowns on the restaurant industry. 

The celebrity chef, 45, told The Daily Telegraph on Saturday that he’s seen many small businesses devastated in his native England, which has recently gone into yet another lockdown. 

‘This is f***king brutal. It’s brutal, unforgiving and it’s survival of the fittest,’ he told the publication. 

‘We’re seeing really healthy businesses pre-COVID that were robust, famous and much-loved with history and integrity and we can tell that there are many things that can just make them very vulnerable or dead right now.’

Jamie went on to say that the devastation has been similar both in Britain and Australia, and he believes that governments have not done enough to help save local businesses. 

‘It does feel like the fast food purveyors, a lot of them, have had quite a good time during this pandemic. 

‘And the ones that really foster the true Aussie food culture seem to be getting battered, as they are in Britain, from every corner and treated the same by the government as if they’re the same kind of businesses. 

‘And they are completely different. You can’t compare one end of the spectrum to another. Yes, they provide food but that’s about the only thing they’ve got in common,’ he added.   

While in lockdown, Jamie managed to stay busy by making the TV show Keep Cooking And Carry On – which was largely filmed on his wife’s phone. 

On Friday Jamie shared a sweet image with wife Jools, 46, and their two sons Buddy, 10, and River, four, to mark the hit show winning an award. 

The chef explained in the caption to his heartwarming picture that his show Keep Cooking And Carry On had been crowned the TV Times’ favourite Lockdown Show. 

Jamie, who is also dad to Poppy, 18, Daisy, 17, Petal, 11, has been sharing regular updates during his time in lockdown on Instagram.