Captain Kerry Titheradge‘s unruly season 12 guest might go down in Below Deck history after threatening him with the FBI after he reported her to the police.
During the Monday, July 28, episode, Helen Hoey and her husband, Richard Fiore, returned to the show for a third time. Some of Us have already spotted that Helen is the one who allegedly hooked up with Kyle Stillie, which forced Kerry to launch an investigation. But before viewers got to see that, Helen’s unruly friend Kelly caused chaos hours into the charter.
The issue started when Kelly drank too much and chief steward Fraser Olender had to ask Kerry what to do. Kerry alerted Helen that they would have to “cut off” Kelly from access to any more alcohol, but she had already moved on to water sports.
“Kelly, you have had a lot to drink. I am worried about your safety,” Kerry told Kelly while asking her to “put on” a safety vest. “You have two options. Come back on the boat, please.”
The Below Deck franchise has had its fair share of chaos over the years, but there were some moments that stood out more. During season 7 of the Bravo show, chief stew Kate Chastain and bosun Ashton Pienaar had a scary confrontation when the latter was drunk after a night out. Ashton ended up punching […]
Kelly ignored Kerry and jumped in the water — similar to Delores Flora from season 8.
“I could care less about your stupid yacht,” she fired back. “You have no idea how much of a good swimmer I am. Come chase me.”
In a confessional, Kerry explained why he had to get authorities involved, saying, “Her jumping in the water right now is a huge f*** you. Now what is important to me is her safety and my crew’s safety. When I ask you specifically not to do something and you go against what I say, we have got a freaking problem.”
With help from the deck team, Kerry prevented Kelly from getting back into the water. She wasn’t thrilled when the captain told her “the authorities” would be getting involved if she didn’t listen to them.
“I can do whatever I want. I don’t need f***ing safety. You are f***king torturing me. Don’t do that to me,” she told Kerry. “You are disgusting. I can do whatever I want.”
Kelly continued: “I f***ing hate everybody. They are f***ing assholes. They are f***ing Democrats.”
Kerry ordered the deck team to step in if necessary, adding, “Just make a wall and crowd her in. Try not to touch as best as we can, but if it’s safety related, then we are allowed to do that.”
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While trying to deescalate the situation, Kerry urged Kelly to return to her cabin. Kelly, however, threatened that she had “connections.”
“I have the FBI in my family,” she told Kerry, who replied, “You need to get back into your cabin now. I am not going to take any threats from anyone. I don’t care who you know, it doesn’t matter. There is one authority on this boat and it is me. Get back to the cabin.”
He continued: “She tried to attack me and threaten me. She is extremely drunk. She could fall and hurt herself. She could drown. I have to do whatever it takes to keep her safe.”
While calling the authorities, Kerry reported a “violent” guest. He subsequently locked Kelly in a room and asked Damo Yorg to hold the door so she wouldn’t get out. By the time the police were about to board St. David, Kerry and the guests advised Kelly — who claimed she was on the phone with the FBI — to get off the boat willingly or risk being detained.
A “To Be Continued” message appeared on the screen as Below Deck viewers wait to see what will happen next. Before season 12 premiered, Kerry explained why he had to get the authorities involved.
Below Deck and its spinoff series have never failed to bring the drama to Bravo fans everywhere since the franchise launched. The original series premiered in 2013, documenting the daily lives of crew members on luxurious yachts during charter season. With each season, the crew members’ personal lives have begun to cross over into their […]
“I’ve never called the police to help me out,” Kerry recalled in June. “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 St-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.
“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,” he continued. “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 noted: “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 Fraser to translate between myself and the police.”
Below Deck airs on Bravo Mondays at 8 p.m. ET. New episodes stream the next day on Peacock.
