Jamie Oliver Does Good

In the past twenty years, Jamie Oliver (a.k.a. The Naked Chef) has made a “pukka” evolution from a rock and roll drummer–to a chef–to a T.V. personality–to an outspoken children’s health advocate (in case you were wondering, “pukka” is Jamie’s word for brilliant). Jamie grew up in a small Essex village and got his culinary feet wet in his parents’ pub as a kid, where he developed the no-frills, disheveled cooking style for which he has become famous. His fame began in 1998 when his acclaimed, indie-esque cooking show The Naked Chef became a hit in the U.K. His most recent efforts have been focused on tackling the enormous problem of unhealthy food in U.K.’s schools, and has delivered the problem to the public eye with his shows School Dinners and, most recently, Jamie’s Return to School Dinners. Using his fame and T.V. shows as a voice, Jamie has been instrumental in the creation of new governmentally-mandated school food standards in the U.K.– called the School Food Trust. Jamie Oliver is not just an amazing chef, or a quirky and fun guy–he truly cares about children’s health and has used his notoriety to create positive change in his home country. Maybe he can free some time up to continue his efforts in the U.S.?