Season 12 of Below Deck is about to have a franchise first with police being called, which is only “the tip of the iceberg” when it comes to onscreen drama.
During an exclusive interview with Us Weekly, Captain Kerry Titheradge teased how things potentially got physical with a guest, which resulted in him having to get the authorities involved.
“I’ve never called the police to help me out,” Kerry, 49, recalled. “I have asked the police to not come because of loud music. I feel like I got it under control [in the past]. I would be in Saint-Tropez in France and there’s a party upstairs at 3 a.m. The French don’t like that but I’ve never had to involve the police on any issues on the boat.”
Kerry admitted he “didn’t want to” contact the police while filming, adding, “I didn’t want to bring reproach on the vessel. But my main job is the safety of my passengers, the crew and the vessel.”
‘Below Deck’ Cast Members’ Legal Troubles Through the Years
Below Deck fans had questions after Bravo released the first look in April. The first seconds of the trailer showed the maritime police — including helicopters — circling over St. David after guests prepared for their charter to get canceled.
“We have an emergency on the boat,” Kerry told someone, “There is one authority on this boat and that is me. I am not f***ing around.”
According to Kerry, a specific guest was to blame. “This guest was acting unsafe — especially to herself. I was not in a position to take care of that problem internally. She wouldn’t listen. So I had to post crew all over the vessel to make sure she wouldn’t do anything silly. I talked to the guests to try to get her to understand. But when people have a lot to drink, their personality changes.”
He continued: “It was compassion. I could see she was hurting and she was striking out at us of her own pain. This wasn’t a place for us to solve her issues.”
Kerry’s biggest challenge, however, had nothing to do with the guest. “Especially since we’re on the French side, I don’t speak French,” he recalled. “So I needed [chief steward] Fraser [Olender] to translate between myself and the police.”
Why Was There ‘Below Deck’ Drama After Kyle Slept With a Married Guest?
The visit from the police was just the beginning. Elsewhere in the trailer, returning deckhand Kyle Stillie was accused of hooking up with a married guest while her husband was onboard. It isn’t clear whether he actually crossed that boundary — even though the footage is pointing toward something intimate taking place — but Fraser, 32, told Us in May that “things were turbulent” already on St. David before Kyle’s extracurricular activity with the guest.
“I’ve done it before, so I can’t speak on [hooking up with a guest]. What is a hard no is on charter and what is a hard no is potentially engaging in something whilst their married significant other is also around,” Fraser teased. “It was definitely [the most explosive thing I have been a part of]. Because this situation then was the catalyst of so many other problems. And this really did spiral into something that no one saw coming. So it’s the beginning of the end. It’s so good though.”
Below Deck airs on Bravo Mondays at 8 p.m. ET. New episodes stream the next day on Peacock.
