Josiah And Julia Tell All On Dealing With Nightmare Guests On Below Deck Galley Talk - Exclusive
Become a yachtie, see the world! That's a sales pitch that has certainly lured many a budding hospitality management professional towards the rarefied air of luxury superyacht charters, where ports of call include such vistas as Croatia's Dalmatian Coast, Greece's Ionian Islands, and the French Riviera. Add to those Mediterranean climes the thrill of becoming a cast member on Bravo's enduring "Below Deck" franchise, and the prospects can start to look pretty solid for any young yachtie in the business. There's one thing to remember, though: at the end of any scenic day, it's the primary and their fellow charter guests whose every whim demands the most satisfaction. And sometimes that fact can make paradise a nightmare.
"You do have to be careful with guests. You just have to go, 'Yes, sir. No, sir. What can I get you?'" veteran yachtie and "Below Deck Mediterranean" cast member Julia d'Albert Pusey told Nicki Swift in an exclusive interview. These days she's a co-host of "Below Deck Galley Talk" with fellow cast vet Josiah Carter, and in our freewheeling chat, the occasionally harsh realities of their own charter guest interactions were recalled by both with a bit of grimacing. And Julia and Josiah also gave us their takes on another facet of the "Below Deck" world: the inevitability of more drama always existing just beyond the horizon.
Nightmare guest regrets? They've had a few.
Longtime viewers of "Below Deck" and its spinoff "Below Deck Mediterranean" know that beyond these shows' perpetual boatmances and interpersonal crew shenanigans, it's the eccentricities, dietary proclivities, and sometimes outright loutish behavior of the moneyed charter guests that fuel the watchability. As it turns out, we're not the only ones watching nowadays. For "Below Deck Galley Talk," Bravo brought back fan-favorite veterans of previous seasons to watch and comment on everything happening with the current show, and for co-hosts Julia d'Albert Pusey and Josiah Carter, it puts their experiences onboard in perspective. "I think now I'm a bit older, I would speak my mind a little bit if I felt a bit disrespected," Pusey told Nicki Swift.
Carter agreed. "Sometimes the way that people treat you is obviously not the nicest in the world, and it's what we're used to. And it shouldn't be what we're used to," he shared. "So, I think I would probably change, potentially, pulling a guest aside and saying, 'Look, maybe let's not speak to people like that.' Or, 'Let's not treat people like that, because if we treat people in a much nicer fashion, we are more likely to do much more things for you.'"
"I would much rather do the bare minimum for someone that's not treating me very well," Carter continued. "If they're treating me nicely, I'd rather go over, above, and beyond for them. So yeah, I think speaking up a little bit more and speaking your mind a little bit more would be definitely one to keep in the mind."
The other "Below Deck Med" shoe, always dropping
"Well, I think one thing that we've got to realize from 'Below Deck' is when you think the shoe's dropped, there's another one behind it, very close." That's veteran superyacht steward Josiah Carter on the state of near-constant crew drama that buoys any season of the long-running Bravo hit. And Carter, who co-hosts the network's "Galley Talk Below Deck Mediterranean" with fellow veteran yachtie Julia d'Albert Pusey, has gained even more insight on the show from his current perch, which allows him the confidence to assure us that there's even more drama afloat. "Yeah, always expect the unexpected is what I've realized from filming 'Galley Talk' and watching the shows and even being on my season. ... There is always something bigger and better, or potentially worse, coming up behind it. So yeah, just keep your eyes peeled, because I think it's a good season."
As for Pusey, she understands the kind of marathon that the crew is running in. "I think, at this point, people are getting tireder, they're getting more irritated with people's behavior. They are ready to lose their rag. So things are just boiling. This is when people's true colors start showing. So yeah, definitely. Watch out."
This week's episode of "Galley Talk" will air on Saturday at 7 pm ET/PT. New episodes of "Below Deck Mediterranean" air on Mondays at 9 pm ET/PT on Bravo and episodes drop one week early on Mondays on Peacock.