Below Deck Mediterranean Season 4, Episode 8, titled What Eze the Problem, aired on Bravo on Monday. The episode followed the crew of the luxury motor yacht Sirocco hosting the 53-year-old Jackie Siegel, aka the Queen of Versailles.
“That was one of the best times of my life,” Siegel said, according to Orlando Sentinel. “They went above and beyond my expectations: Champagne, caviar, I even got my quail eggs.”
Jackie Siegel also found time to pay tribute to her daughter Victoria who tragically died of an accidental drug overdose in 2015 at the age of 18. To honor Victoria, Jackie lit Chinese paper lanterns and released them into the night sky over the Mediterranean Sea.
She was also able to connect in her sense of loss with someone from Below Deck, who lost her father weeks before the show.
Who is Jackie Siegel, the Queen of Versailles and her daughter Victoria?
Jackie Siegel was born on January 19, 1966, and grew up in Binghamton, New York. She obtained a degree in computer engineering from the Rochester Institute of Technology in 1989.
She is a model, an actress, and a socialite.
After winning the Mrs. Florida America beauty pageant in 1993, Jackie acquired the Mrs. Florida America beauty pageant and is currently the director.
But she is best known for appearing in Lauren Greenfield’s 2012 documentary film The Queen of Versailles as the wife of Westgate Resorts owner David Siegel, whom she married in 2000.
Westgate Resorts is a Florida-based timeshare resort company, and David Siegel is the CEO.
Who was Victoria Siegel?
Jackie and David have eight children, including an adopted daughter Jonquil. Their daughter Victoria died of an accidental overdose in June 2015 at the age of 18.
Victoria was found unresponsive at their home on Seagull Island in Windermere, Florida. She was rushed to the hospital where she was pronounced dead. The cause of death was found to be an overdose of the synthetic analgesic methadone antidepressant sertraline (Zoloft).
Jackie Siegel’s Versailles house
Jackie and David were the subjects of Lauren Greenfield’s award-winning documentary The Queen of Versailles (2012), which gave viewers a look into the opulent lifestyle of America’s wealthiest.
The Siegels, one of Orlando’s wealthiest family, embarked on a project to build one of America’s largest single-family residence that they called Versailles, after the famous Château de Versailles (Palace of Versailles) in France.
Their Versailles house, located just outside Orlando, was planned to occupy 90,000 square foot with 14 bedrooms, 11 kitchens, a roller rink, bowling alley, a movie theater, two elevators, and a 30-car garage.
Lauren Greenfield’s award-winning documentary, The Queen of Versailles (2012), followed the project for the construction of the building.
Soon after they started construction, the Great Recession began in 2008, and they were forced to abandon the project. The couple put up the mansion for sale, but no one wanted to buy it.
Orlando Business Journal reported in an article published in January 2019 that construction work on Jackie and David’s Versailles house had resumed, but progress on the project was slow.
The couple said at the time that it might take up to two years to complete it.
In March 2019, Jackie showed Insider (see video below) her massive, two-level, 2,000 square-foot closet in Versailles and it appeared the family was already using a section of the building.
The house was still under construction in April 2019.
Jackie’s focus has since shifted to advocating against drug abuse
Although she was able to take time off for a luxury cruise onboard the motor yacht Sirrocco, Jackie has been busy lately working to raise awareness about the opioid drug epidemic and how it affects U.S. teenagers.
She and David went into advocacy after their daughter Victoria died tragically from an accidental overdose in 2015.
Jackie and David started the Victoria Siegel Foundation and have raised millions of dollars to bring attention to the opioid crisis and fight drug abuse among young Americans.
“When you have all the money in the world, but you can’t bring your daughter back, you don’t really care about the house,” Jackie told the London Times.
They also produced a film about Victoria, titled Princess of Versailles. You can watch the movie on YouTube (see below).
They also published their daughter’s diary, Victoria’s Voice, and plan to produce a movie about it.
Below Deck Med airs Mondays at 9 p.m. on Bravo.