Jamie Oliver has been living a quiet life away from the spotlight in a sprawling manor house reportedly worth £6 million
Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver is best known for his work on television, in books and on podcasts — but away from the cameras, the 51-year-old has been living a very quiet life in an Elizabethan mansion in a peaceful Essex village.
The property, Spains Hall, is thought to be worth around £6 million and sits near the village of Finchingfield, Essex. It is home to Jamie, his wife Jools, and their five children: Daisy Boo, Poppy Honey, Buddy Bear, Petal Blossom, and River Rocket.
Jamie grew up in Clavering, Essex, and after the pandemic decided to leave London behind in search of a quieter life in the countryside. Spains Hall sits on 70 acres of land and has 10 bathrooms, two drawing rooms, and a grand period great hall.
The estate also includes a six-bedroom 16th-century farmhouse, a three-bedroom lodge, and renovated stables.
The precise reasons behind Jamie’s choosing to buy the property have never been fully explained. However, the chef – who first found fame as The Naked Chef – has hinted that the move was linked to the previous collapse of his restaurant chain, Jamie’s Italian.
“No one really knows why I bought this house,” he told The Times.
He added: “I don’t feel ready to share yet… But if I was just being media savvy, I wouldn’t have moved there when everything was going wrong.”
Speaking openly about what the house means to him, he said: “It’s an old gaff that’s falling down; only an idiot would buy it. But to have come from where I was born to that house that’s only had three families owning it in 600 years, for me as a kid that went through special needs in school, it’s social mobility.”
The manor also has an intriguing history. Over a hundred years ago, burglars dumped stolen loot in the estate’s lake after their vehicle broke down.
The valuables lay undiscovered underwater for around 150 years, until they were found by the current residents.
Finchingfield is often called England’s most photographed village, and it is easy to see why. It has colourful cottages, a traditional windmill, and a duck pond set around a classic village green.
Jamie has spoken warmly about the area before, telling ES Magazine: “Home is a little village in Essex called Finchingfield. It’s a beautiful little place, and somewhere I used to take Jools for dates when we were younger.”
Reflecting on his decision to leave London after 25 years, he said: “Before that, [home] was London for 25 years. After Covid, we decided to sort of make the jump.”
He has also admitted that he would happily give up fame for a normal life, telling BBC Radio 4’s Young Again podcast that his dream would be to run a pub.
Finchingfield sits on the B1052 road between Braintree and Saffron Walden, just 54 miles from London. According to Rightmove, house prices in Finchingfield have risen by an average of £606,395 over the last year.
Overall, the historical sold prices in Finchingfield over the last year were 11% down on the previous year and 15% down on the 2023 peak of £716,036.
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