Daisy Kelliher weathered a storm of drama between Gary King and Colin Macrae last season on Below Deck Sailing Yacht. The chief stew hoped to move past the tumultuous love triangle and focus on the job at hand during Season 5.
That proves to be easier said than done with Kelliher having to work alongside King, who also returns as first mate. The two department heads once again report to Captain Glenn Shephard aboard the Parsifal III. This time around the vessel ventures to Ibiza, a noted island party paradise. Rounding out the crew are Chef Cloyce Martin, Chief Engineer Davide Morosi, stews Diana Cruz and Danni Warren, and deckhands Keith Allen and Emma Crouch.
Before the new season sets sail, Kelliher gets candid on what’s to come, addresses her baby plans and more.
Given everything that happened last season, did you have any trepidation coming back?
Daisy Kelliher: I love Captain Glenn. I know the boat. I know what to expect. It’s always a good time, whether tears are involved or not.
What were your thoughts on working with Gary again?
You know initially I was fine with it. After Season 4 we were fine. The reunion, which was close to the filming of the new season really resurfaced everything. For Colin, Gary, and I, everything ended quite amicably. Colin and I ended amicably. Gary and I were fine, but the reunion really brought up a lot for everyone. Things turned from fine to quite bad. So, that was unfortunate going into having to film this season after that reunion. After that, I was not too happy being back on board with Gary, to be honest.
Did you find Colin not coming back this season made things a little easier?
I think if the reunion hadn’t happened, I would have absolutely worked with Colin again. There was no massive hostility. There was of course the breakup, but the reunion unfortunately too much was said. It got too hostile. I think if I had to walk onto that boat with both of them, I don’t know. I did feel quite ganged up on during the reunion. To see both of them, I would have struggled more. I think having just one was easier than the two.
Pictured: Gary King — (Photo by: Fred Jagueneau/Bravo)
Right out of the gate, you and Gary have a talk. How important was that for you to have this conversation at the beginning of the season and get those emotions out? Maybe helped eliminate some of that initial uneasiness.
That conversation was post-reunion. We filmed the reunion a few days before. I tried to speak to him, but he didn’t want to speak to me. Going on, I had a lot of emotions that he is able to just go on and put away. I’m not like that. For me, it was very important. I wish we had done it off-camera. That’s why I attempted to speak to him before. I didn’t want it to be on camera and bring this on to the new season.
He didn’t want to have that conversation. I was then like, “Well, we’re just going to have to have it now then.” Yeah, it was important. I’m not the type of person who is going to be tight-lipped. If someone hurt me or upset me or I feel they’ve done bad to me, it was important for me to say, “I’m not okay with it. I’m not going to be treated like this by anybody.” It was a good start to the season. At the same time, so much damage had been done it wasn’t going to be resolved with one conversation, unfortunately.
How was it being in Ibiza? It’s known as this party place. How did that factor into your crew’s nights out?
It was awesome. We were excited to be there. It was actually my fourth season on Below Deck and the first season we were really out of COVID protocol. I was like, “We get to go dancing? Interact with other people?” They were like, “Yeah.” Other shows got to go dancing. Ibiza was perfect for that. I got to do more of that. It was great.
How does the interior staff measure up this season? It seems Danni has this big personality. It seems like she might be a challenge for you.
This season was a challenge because I had never worked with stews like that. They were certainly capable to an extent. You’ll see. Danni was definitely a challenge. She definitely has a big personality and a bigger personality than Diana, and I think Diana fell into a trap there. That’s the best way I can describe it. I was going through a lot of personal turmoil after the reunion. There was stuff online. I was struggling mentally. So to have this kind of girl be up in my face much of the season. It was interesting. There is definitely a bit of a rollercoaster with that. They are okay at their job. At times good, but for me, it was a real challenge. For me, this will be interesting to watch how that played out.
You never know what you’re going to get with a chef. Cloyce is this young gun who is very confident. There is a lot of stress that builds as you’re working on that first charter and you’re trying to get your footing. How would you describe working with him?
Cloyce is such an interesting person to work with. Again, someone I never experienced. Some days I couldn’t say anything and thought I was walking on water. I would think, “This is easy-going.” Then other days he was completely disrespectful. Sometimes he would be funny and other times annoying. Sometimes he would put out great food and other times I’m like, “What is this?” You never knew what you were getting with him. He kept me on my toes. He was a good addition to the season. It was interesting, and we love interesting.
What can you tease about the guests? We have some great guests. We got guests who almost got us fired. We’ve got guests who are complaining and aren’t happy, which we hate but viewers love. We’ve got some Bravo people coming on, Detox from RuPaul’s Drag Race. We had a great mix of guests this year.
Fred Jagueneau/Bravo
How was working with Captain Glenn this season and the crew he has to manage?
I don’t think Glenn was a happy camper this year. There were a few incidents he had to have some stern talking with the crew. There were some difficult conversations he had to have. It was another challenging season. It’s never smooth sailing, and this year is no different.
You declare at the start of the season that you are “staying away from the D” and just focusing on the job. Do your eyes wander?
I certainly gave it a good try, but six weeks is a long time on a boat. I’m not going to give too much away. You’ll have to wait and see, but all I’ll say is six weeks is a long time on a boat.
You’ve been very public about freezing your eggs as you plan ahead to when you want a baby. Why was it important for you to share your story?
I think there is a responsibility that comes with being an influencer or TV personality or anybody with a public platform. I think there are certain things in my life I try to keep as private as possible, but I think there is a social responsibility there. It’s the same when I shared about my sister’s [scooter accident] and reminded people to wear their helmets and have travel insurance.
It’s the same with the egg freezing. People support me in my journey. Being a public figure,I do feel there is a public responsibility there to be vulnerable and share my story. It’s easy to follow people and see them live their perfect lives, but that’s not going to help anyone. If anything, that does more damage. I think stepping into this role for the last four years now, I think you have to give it your all and that means being vulnerable and showing my life isn’t perfect. I want to show the challenges I face and show people they are not alone. I try to take my role as seriously as possible, which means showing that private side.
Below Deck Sailing Yacht Season 5 premiere, October 7, 9/8c, Bravo
