The Story Behind Amelia Dimoldenberg And Chicken Shop Date

Chicken shops are everywhere in London. In fact, research suggests that in 2019, there were more than 8,000 in the U.K. capital, each serving up a menu of fried chicken, nuggets, and fries to people from all walks of life. For many Brits, ending a night out drinking with a trip to the chicken shop isn't unusual. However, most wouldn't necessarily look to build their career there, but then again, most people aren't Amelia Dimoldenberg.

Dimoldenberg, who grew up in London, is an incredibly successful YouTuber and interviewer. She started her series "Chicken Shop Date," in which she interviews celebrities over a plate of nuggets — chicken or plant-based — in a chicken shop, back in 2014. Since then, she has had plenty of viral moments. Her videos consistently rack up millions of views as fans all over the world tune in to watch her ask awkward questions and deliver one-liners with her signature deadpan expression. Dimoldenberg's interviews started out in a Chicken Cottage, which is one of the U.K.'s most popular chicken shop chains. Now, they frequently take place in Sam's Chicken, but Dimoldenberg has also interviewed celebrity guests in other chicken shops, including Morley's and Chicken King.

Dimoldenberg's journey to chicken shop fame has had plenty of ups and downs. Find out more about her story below, from studying fashion journalism at Central Saint Martins to her viral TikTok hit with Louis Theroux to setting up her own production company. 

Amelia Dimoldenberg is now undoubtedly a bonafide A-lister in her own right. Not only is she the host of the beloved YouTube series "Chicken Shop Date," but she also has a recurring gig interviewing Hollywood's biggest stars at events such as the Academy Awards, for example. The Oscars red carpet might seem like an odd place for somebody who hosts an interview series set in London's chicken shops, but actually, Dimoldenberg has just the right training for the job.

Before she started her now world-famous YouTube series and built an impressive social media following (she has 2.4 million followers on Instagram alone), Dimoldenberg was studying fashion journalism at Central Saint Martins, which is part of the University of the Arts London and one of the U.K.'s most prestigious fashion colleges. Other famous fashion names to come out of Central Saint Martins include Stella McCartney and the late designer, Alexander McQueen.

In 2024, Dimoldenberg received an additional Honorary Fellowship from Central Saint Martins, seven years after she graduated. And she was in good company; musicians Loyle Carner and Kojey Radical were also among those to receive an Honorary Fellowship from Central Saint Martins in 2024. In a statement, James Purnell, the president of the University of the Arts London, described Dimoldenberg and her fellow honoraries as "changemakers," praising their "extraordinary input and impact on the arts, culture, and society."

Over the 10 years that she has been part of "Chicken Shop Date," Amelia Dimoldenberg has been on countless dates, but it all started back when she was a teenager. She is now 31, but she went on her very first date for the series (before it became a worldwide YouTube sensation) at the age of 17. After that, it would be three more years before she started shooting video content similar to what we see from "Chicken Shop Date" now.

Dating has, of course, been a huge part of Dimoldenberg's success, but the large majority of the dates we see are purely for entertainment purposes. In an interview in March 2025, Dimoldenberg told Cosmopolitan UK that she has never dated any of the guests in real life — even though some viewers might like her to. Dimoldenberg's chemistry with Andrew Garfield during a red carpet interview at the Golden Globes in 2023 sent fans into a frenzy, for example.

Garfield eventually appeared on "Chicken Shop Date" at the end of 2024 in an 11-minute long episode. But in 2025, she told The New Yorker, "I don't think it's going to happen," adding that if there was a chance, she'd already be with him. She also confirmed to Cosmopolitan UK that even though she thought Garfield was lovely, she had already "friend-zoned" him.

When Amelia Dimoldenberg first started dating people in chicken shops when she was 17, she wasn't documenting any of it on YouTube, or any other social media platform for that matter. Instead, she was writing it all down in a column for a youth club magazine. It was after she started at Central Saint Martins that she began filming episodes and uploading them to her YouTube account.

Dimoldenberg was dedicated to her "Chicken Shop Date" series from the beginning, and took it extremely seriously. In a 2017 article she wrote for The Guardian, Dimoldenberg said she was so committed to the YouTube series it felt like she was "studying for two degrees." Her tutors were not so impressed, however. In fact, Dimoldenberg said that for one tutor, in particular, her chicken shop dates were a source of "continual annoyance."

In an Instagram post about her 2024 Honorary Fellowship from Central Saint Martins, Dimoldenberg reflected on this criticism from her tutors. She wrote that when she graduated from the college, she felt "somewhat of a failure" due to the lack of approval she had received from her tutors. She said that looking back on it now, she felt that their judgement was "irrelevant." In the post, she encouraged others to hold onto their "creative independence" and to remember that when one door shuts "there is always another door to open."

The very first guest on Amelia Dimoldenberg's YouTube version of "Chicken Shop Date" was Ghetts, a British grime MC. In the interview — which, in 2014 had less than 1,000 views but now has 1.3 million — Dimoldenberg shows she has already honed her trademark, slightly awkward, incredibly dry interviewing style. She asks the musician things like "Do you have pets, Ghetts?" and "If your music was a type of chicken, which part of the chicken would it be?" with her now signature deadpan expression.

According to Dimoldenberg, she started enjoying grime music during her time at the youth club (the same one where she wrote the "Chicken Shop Date" magazine column). She was inspired to interview grime artists because she wanted people to watch the content she was putting out, and that's what her peers were listening to at the time. Dimoldenberg also told The Cut in 2024 that the original idea to interview grime artists was "two birds, one stone" — she got to make content for her YouTube channel and had the chance to meet and date the musicians, too.

Since then, "Chicken Shop Date" has, of course, moved away from grime. Now, Dimoldenberg interviews many different kinds of musicians, including "Wicked" star, Cynthia Erivo, for example (who ate vegan chicken on the show), Sabrina Carpenter, and SZA.

Amelia Dimoldenberg is a big music fan, and has interviewed many musicians on the show, welcoming icons like Cher, Shania Twain, Billie Eilish, and Sean Paul. But "Chicken Shop Date" is not just limited to musical guests.

Other world-famous stars that have sat down for a bite of chicken and an awkward chat with Dimoldenberg on the show include actors Hugh Jackman, Ryan Reynolds, Jennifer Lawrence, and even Elmo, the puppet from "Sesame Street." During his interview, which currently has 1.5 million views, Dimoldenberg asked Elmo things like "What's the secret to the perfect hug?" and "Does 'Sesame Street' have chicken shops?" In 2023, Dimoldenberg even interviewed Sean Evans, the host of another popular YouTube chicken-focused interview series, "Hot Ones." She told him that it was "maybe the greatest crossover of all time."

According to Dimoldenberg, stars are now lining up to be on "Chicken Shop Date," but she can't say yes to everyone. She told Cosmopolitan UK that she wants people on the show who she is genuinely a fan of, for example, and who "make sense" in the chicken shop. She didn't name any names, but she added: "We turn people down all the time." She also confirmed that in the future, she hopes to interview people like Kendrick Lamar, Adele, and Timothée Chalamet for "Chicken Shop Date."

In 2022, you probably heard the lyrics "my money don't jiggle jiggle, it folds" on TikTok at least once. The rap song, called "Jiggle Jiggle" and sung by the journalist and presenter, Louis Theroux, was one of the year's biggest viral hits. But it wasn't written that year. In fact, "Jiggle Jiggle" was first recorded back in the early 2000s, as part of Theroux's "Weird Weekends" series. In the episode, which was focused on rap music, Theroux rapped live on a radio show.

Amelia Dimoldenberg knew about the rap, and asked Theroux to repeat it during his interview on "Chicken Shop Date." It was this rendition that ultimately went viral — it even led to both Theroux and Dimoldenberg recording the song and filming a music video for it with Jason Derulo. Theroux and Dimoldenberg, who both have a similar approach to interviewing, with an awkward tone and a deadpan expression, have crossed paths many times since their viral hit. In 2023, for example, Dimoldenberg also appeared on "The Louis Theroux Podcast."

When asked to comment on Dimoldenberg for her British Vogue profile in 2024, Theroux spoke of the "Chicken Shop Date" presenter's "brilliance," praising her many qualities, including her "warmth, wit, intelligence, beauty, weirdness." He added that while it may not sound as "glamorous," Dimoldenberg's work ethic was important to her success, too.

Amelia Dimoldenberg's journey with "Chicken Shop Date" has seen her interview some of the world's biggest stars, but it hasn't always been this easy. At one point, she even considered selling the rights to the show in order to make enough money to keep going. One media company offered to copyright the format for £500, which is just under $650. The deal would keep Dimoldenberg as the host, but she would be a salaried employee. "Thank God I didn't do it," she told The Cut.

Instead, Dimoldenberg kept control of the format, and she still runs "Chicken Shop Date" by herself with the help of two other full-time employees. She told The Cut that she doesn't make "Chicken Shop Date" for the money or to be famous, but to offer something of quality. "It's just stuff that's good," she said.

"Chicken Shop Date" didn't turn a profit until 2019, which was after Dimoldenberg decided to partner with Voxi at the end of 2018. Run by Vodafone, Voxi is a mobile network for people aged under 29. The collaboration between "Chicken Shop Date" and Voxi saw Dimoldenberg travel the UK as part of a limited series called "The Hot Sauce Tour."

The deal with Voxi wasn't the only thing that helped keep "Chicken Shop Date" afloat. It's not confirmed exactly how much Amelia Dimoldenberg makes from YouTube, but creators generally get up to $30 per 1,000 views. That's around $15,000 for a video with 500,000 views, and the majority of her "Chicken Shop Date" interviews have more than this. In fact, many count views in the millions. Dimoldenberg has put this income to good use. Also in 2018, as well as the Voxi deal, Dimoldenberg also started her own production company, called Dimz Inc., which is funded by the money she makes from her YouTube ads.

As well as "Chicken Shop Date," Dimz Inc. is a home for all of Dimoldenberg's projects, like "Amelia's Cooking Show" and "The Oscars Luncheon." The latter ran in 2024 and saw Dimoldenberg interview nominees over, you guessed it, chicken nuggets. Soon, Dimoldenberg is also set to launch the Dimz Inc. Academy, which will support young people to harness their creativity.

Dimoldenberg told Cosmopolitan UK that the project makes sense, given that the very first iteration of "Chicken Shop Date" was in her local youth club's magazine. "It has been an ambition of mine to create something for young people," she said, before adding that she hopes the academy can be a place where people from "all walks of life" can thrive.

Much of Louis Theroux's success has come from his distinct awkward, yet direct interviewing technique, and in his comments for British Vogue, he complimented Amelia Dimoldenberg's similar style, noting that her encounters are "brilliant" because of this technique. He added, however, that she is not mean or cheeky. "It's safe awkwardness," he clarified.

Dimoldenberg herself is also aware that her awkwardness and blunt nature are key to her virality. She has always been sarcastic (and once said she got detentions for that when she was at school), but it's now very useful. She wrote in her 2017 piece for The Guardian that her approach helps to "disarm" media-trained celebrities. More recently, she told Cosmopolitan UK that the personality people see in "Chicken Shop Date" and on the red carpet is "exaggerated," but it is still her through and through. She added that she has evolved as a person since that first episode with Ghetts, however. She is now "confident and warm," she says.

This persona has undoubtedly won her fans all over the world. On YouTube, she has nearly 3 million subscribers, and her videos frequently count views in the millions (the one with Garfield, for example, has reached 10 million). She appeals to many different people. In fact, one of her biggest fans is Kylie Jenner, the reality TV star entrepreneur, and youngest sister in the Kardashian family, who also happens to be a big fast food fan.

Despite its ongoing success, "Chicken Shop Date" will eventually end. Amelia Dimoldenberg has confirmed in multiple interviews that she doesn't want the series to last forever. But that said, she has no plans to end it soon, so we can expect plenty more dates over chicken nuggets from the awkward star in the future.

As well as projects like Dimz Inc. Academy, Dimoldenberg is also likely to continue strengthening her presence on the red carpet. She says she puts huge amounts of effort into these appearances to ensure they are unique and different from other interviews that are already out there. She told Cosmopolitan UK that she always tries to avoid being "generic." This can be seen in her interviews at the Academy Awards, for example, in which she called affectionately called Timothée Chalamet, "Timmy" and told him, "It's the taking part that counts." She also sang with Jeff Goldblum and asked Cynthia Erivo if they could get matching tattoos.

But while she describes herself as a journalist, Dimoldenberg also intends to expand beyond interviewing. She has been involved in other TV shows, with some writing and producing credits to her name, and she wants to do more in this sphere. She also told Cosmopolitan UK that she has plans to move into movies, too, and has even written her own script for a comedy. Watch this space.