Current and former Below Deck Mediterranean cast members are spilling some behind the scenes secrets of the Bravo show.
There is no question a lot more goes into creating the hit yachting show than fans see play out throughout a season. The New York Times recently delved deep into the reality behind all three of the Below Deck shows.
However, no one knows what truly goes on better than the cast and crew. Producers from time to time give some juicy tidbits of filming to fans. Cast members have also been known to dish some dirty secrets too.
Some of Below Deck Med’s favorite crew members are once again sharing insight into what is really like to the show.
Lack of breaks and preparation
Season 5 cast member Jessica More recently shared with In Touch magazine that crew breaks are few and far between. Each crew member is supposed to get a one to two-hour break during their shift. Jessica claims that those breaks rarely happen.
As for sleep, there is never enough of that either. The third stew admitted the crew is mostly running off of adrenaline the whole time, not proper rest. It is the nature of the business.
Jessica also shared the crew is never fully prepared for the charter because of the turnaround time. Even with an experienced crew, there is always something that goes wrong.
“It’s one of those where you can never be prepared in time for a charter in 24 hours, whatever that time span is. So, you just got to do what you got to do,” Jessica revealed. “You hit the ground running, and you don’t even really get too much of a chance to figure out how things work.”
Space and camera crew
Unlike other Bravo shows that film in lavish and large locations, all superyachts present a space issue.
According to chief stew Hannah Ferrier, The Wellington is a luxury yacht, but there are tight spaces. Throw a camera crew into the mix, and those spaces become even smaller.
Fans know the cast is not allowed to talk to the production crew during filming. Breaking the fourth wall is a big no-no on all reality TV shows, but it occasionally happens.
Hannah added more insight into the crew’s relationship with the camera team during an In Touch magazine interview. She admitted the production team are considered guests.
“They’re still guests at the end of the day, so we still need to ensure that they’re looked after and treated with respect,” Hannah explained.
The crew laughs a lot
Colin Macy-O’Toole was a deckhand on Season 3 and 4 of Below Deck Med. He currently does a podcast where he chats with Bravo stars.
According to the deckhand, there are a lot of good times on the show that never make it onscreen. Colin laughed a lot with his fellow deck crew members, Travis Michalzik, and Jack Stirrup.
“They’re goofballs, and they’re so funny, but obviously they show the dramatic side of things like the work stuff that they don’t show how funny everybody is,” he shared with the weekly magazine.
There is so much more to all of the Below Deck franchise show than viewers see each week. Like any reality TV show there good and bad things about filming the series.
Below Deck Mediterranean airs Mondays at 9/8c on Bravo.