Jamie's Kitchen is a five-part British documentary television series that aired on Channel 4 from 5 November to 10 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.

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), has since returned to Sydney, Australia to open his own catering business, JB Events.

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".^{[citation needed]}

James Trevor "Jamie" Oliver, MBE (born 27 May 1975) is an English chef, restaurateur and media personality, known for his food-focused television shows, cookbooks and more recently his campaign against the use of processed foods in national schools. He strives to improve unhealthy diets and poor cooking habits in the United Kingdom and the United States. Jamie Oliver's speciality is Italian cuisine, although he has a broad international repertoire.

Jamie Oliver was brought up in Clavering, Essex, England. His parents ran a pub, "The Cricketers", where he used to practise in the kitchen. He was educated at Newport Free Grammar School. He left school at age sixteen without qualifications and went on to attend Westminster Kingsway College, formerly Westminster College. He then earned a City & Guilds NVQ in home economics.

His first job was as a pastry chef at Antonio Carluccio's Neal's Yard restaurant, where he first gained experience with preparing Italian cuisine, and developed a relationship with his 'mentor' Gennaro Contaldo. Oliver then moved to The River Café, Fulham, as a sous chef.