Jools Oliver Takes Daughters to the Park

An expectant Jools Oliver, wife of chef Jamie Oliver, was spotted taking their daughters  — Poppy Honey, 6 ½, and Daisy Boo, 5 ½ — out to play in Primrose Hill in London on Tuesday. Jamie and Jools expect their third child in April, and although they’d be happy with either sex, are hoping for a son. Jamie recently joked with David Letterman,

"I tell you what, I’ve tried everything. I’ve tried…naked, outsidewhen it was very cold and had a little run up. But next time I’m on theshow I’ll be able to tell you if it’s a boy or not and then maybe wecan turn that into a new tactic."

Bauer Griffin

Comments

Elisa on November 18th, 2008

hi
I’m French and I was just wondering if those names “Poppy Honey” and “Daisy Boo” were real names!!!! I mean, do you have any credibility when you tell people that you second name is “Boo”???!!! It sounds so weird to me!! I’m probably not familiar with american names, but do regular people call their children like this?

Louise on November 18th, 2008

Those girls almost look like twins

Lola on November 18th, 2008

Elisa,
I believe the Olivers are English, not American. Jools certainly isn’t a name anyone would recognize either! Maybe it’s an English nickname for Julie?
That said, some Americans are giving their children names that to others sound strange. I’m not sure if it makes the children feel special or just wierd. At least these children have the “unusual” names for their middle names. In the U.S. at least, they wouldn’t typically be called by both names, and many women drop their middle name when they get married.
I think the ideal would be to pick a name that is somewhere in between “the hot name” and something that isn’t even recognized as a name.

Brandi on November 18th, 2008

Jools’s first name is Juliette. Jools is her nickname.

If I remember right, Boo and Honey are Jools and Jamie’s pet names for each other, and they gave them to the girls. I’m sure a british reader can correct me if that’s not right.

crg on November 18th, 2008

I would think they would be able to find out the sex very soon.

sarah on November 19th, 2008

you are right on that one Brandi.

Heidi on November 19th, 2008

Aww, sweet picture! I love the red boots. They seem like a great family, and it’s nice to see the little girlies… we don’t see pictures of them much here in the U.S., which is probably how the Olivers would prefer it… and I do sympathize — but nevertheless, I do think the picture is sweet and I’m glad I saw it

M on November 19th, 2008

lola – the dropping the middle name when you marry….can you really do that?? man, if i had know, i might have done that since its my mothers name :O

Seraphina on November 19th, 2008

Lola, what do you mean by “many women drop their middle name when they get married?” I have NEVER heard of anyone no longer having a middle name after getting married! Why on earth would someone do that? I believe the Olivers just call their children Daisy and Poppy. Who cares if their middle names are a bit out there? We never really use middle names, except when filling out forms. However, that doesn’t mean I’ll drop my middle name when I get married!

Bumbles on November 19th, 2008

Brandi is right they are their pet names for each other. Although Jools’ name is a nickname it can be a full name and the male version is Jules. I can’t believe how much they have grown, although Jamie is never out of the papers in the UK they seem to be able to keep their children away from the spotlight.

loubie on November 19th, 2008

Hi All, I’m a UK reader..

Jools is a short name for Juliette

Poppy and Daisy are the girls christian names with honey and boo being thier middle names…

Poppy and Daisy are popular names for girls in the UK both are names of flowers.

Hope that helps!

G on November 19th, 2008

Jools’ real name is actually Juliette.

In the UK, we don’t normally refer people by their first and middle names. The only time it’s different is when the names are hyphened.

BTO on November 19th, 2008

When I married (6 years ago) I made my maiden name my middle name and took my husband’s last name. I think this is a fairly common practice.

The girls have lovely names and if they find their middle names embarrassing in the future they can choose to keep them to themselves, people rarely introduce themselves with three names unless hyphenated.

Jools looks fantastic and the girls both adorable!

Sarita on November 19th, 2008

I have never heard of someone dropping their middle name when getting married. Maybe it depends on the area you are from. I know changing your name is not easy here unless it’s your last name for marriage.

t. on November 19th, 2008

you can take your maiden name as your middle name i know several women that have done that. They didnt want to hyphenate the 2 names but wanted their maiden name still there. you can also add it as a second middle name.

Mama_C. on November 19th, 2008

Wow–I’m surprised about the middle name furor! I’m from the “South” region of America and just about everyone I know exchanges their given middle name with their maiden name when they marry. For example, if Susan Ann Smith married a man with the last name Brady, she would change her name to Susan Smith Brady. Unless she hyphenates, where she’d be Susan Ann Smith-Brady. It’s up to the woman, but the vast majority of women I know do the middle name swap (middle name for maiden name.)

Brandi on November 19th, 2008

I am in Brooklyn and most moms I know either keep their last names or just add their husbands on – first name middle name maiden name husband’s name.

lolasmum on November 19th, 2008

Poppy’s full name is Poppy Honey Rosie Oliver. So lovely, eh? Honey is actually used as a first name too in the UK (think honey in my tea, not honey sweetie). Remember Hugh Grant’s sister “Honey” in Notting Hill.? There are also a few celeb-ish types that have called their daughter Honey (Gail Porter).

As others have commented Daisy’s middle name “Boo” is Jool’s nickname apparently. Cute for a small child, but not sure how she will feel about it later on… oh well…

Jools is short for Juliette. We also use Jools as a short form of Julian (anyone watch Later with Jools Holland?).

They are such a lovely family! Will be interesting to see if they have another girl will they continue the flower name theme?

Lou on November 19th, 2008

not many people have commented on it,but jools is looking wonderful,being pregnant really suits her!

hope the family gets all they wish for,and i too am intrigued by what new baby’s name will be with regard to following the flower theme (esp. if it IS a boy?!)
are there any boys flower themed names? cant think!

Re; people complaining about their choice of middle mnames for the girls, considering its the most outragous thing about their family,i think that says a lot about them,and is indeed a positive thing.

i think their middle names are lovely,

i’m from the uk and never use my middle names,the fact i have two would make it quite the mouthful!have never heard of dropping middle manes and using maiden as middle name until now,its a great idea if your name matches! (mine being ‘froment’ means its a no-go for me,cant wait to drop it when i marry!) all the best to jamie,jools and their family. x

Philippa on November 19th, 2008

Those girls are so adorable, and I absolutely love the name Poppy. If I ever have a daughter, I want to name her Poppy. Let’s hope my future boyfriend/husband agrees with that!

Kat on November 19th, 2008

I don’t have a problem with the middle names… if they were first names, sure, but middle names are so rarely heard and hardly ever used, so let them give them something quirky if it signifies something personal and special to them.

And those who mentioned dropping middle names at marriage are correct.

Originally, it was typical for women to, when they married, have their maiden name become their middle name and their married name become their surname.

I read that the first time when I was a teenager… it was in Dear Abby or Ann Landers… forget which.

Obviously most women no longer do that, and that’s fine.

I think it’s up to every woman what she wants to do with her name when she gets married.

Susie on November 19th, 2008

My baby girl is called Poppy!
I love all of the Oliver’s girl’s names, very pretty and girlie.

marla on November 19th, 2008

sarita and seraphina, it’s not an official name change, usually, but for me and everyone i know, they use their maiden names as middle names and married names as their last. so, on my drivers license, i put my name, maiden and then married. i did the same on my credit cards, frequent flyer account, bank, etc. i still have my middle name, of course, it’s just not used on any official documentation. it’s not a big deal.

CelebBabyLover on November 25th, 2008

maria- You explained it beautifully! That is exactly what my mother did when she married my dad! She didn’t (at least as far as I know) legally drop her middle name, but on her driver’s license, checks, credit cards, forums and other things requiring a signature, etc., she uses her maiden name or the inital for her maiden as her middle name/middle initial.

Holly on December 4th, 2008

Lou – we have a family of flower names, too, and we always laugh about what to name a boy! About the only boys names we can come up with are Basil and Spud (a common nickname in Australasia)! Luckily we have only had girls so far

Will watch the next Baby Oliver name with interest.