Below Deck’s 3rd spin-off, Below Deck Down Under, premiered in March 2022 on the streaming giant, Peacock. Following its success, the series transitioned to the Bravo network, where it was met with equally high viewership.
Adding to these high ratings were the great casting decisions made by production prior to filming. Onboard the Thalassa, these reality television-ready crew members could be found hard at work and hard at play.
Sometimes, this play resulted in poor work ethics, and/or strained work relations. In Season 1, two firings within the cast occurred just one episode apart. Third stew Magda Ziomek was let go in episode 13 due to her love of cell phone communications with a strained romantic partner off-air. Her slower work habits didn’t help her case either.
Chef Ryan McKeown’s attitude towards the crew and captain alike, combined with guest complaints, saw his exit in episode 14.
However, several cast members commitment to their positions stood out during Season 1. Here are Below Deck Down Under’s most valuable players thus far.
Captain Jason Chambers
If Captain Jason Chambers‘ appearance on Watch What Happens Live made you blush, we understand. As the youngest captain in the Below Deck franchise, Captain Jason’s good looks and strong leadership combined to create a highly watchable experience. Due to his age, he was often seen mingling with the crew, and his single status and admitted willingness to date someone within his staff means that eyes need to be on the wheelhouse during Season 2.
Captain Jason is also a father. On-air, he was often seen FaceTiming his daughter throughout charters. The love he displayed for his child showed a tender nature, which was first seen during an interaction with Deckhand Benny Crawley. When Benny’s toilet overflowed and he underwent a meltdown of sorts. Captain Jason calmly helped Benny remedy the problem and clean up the mess.
When Bosun Jamie Sayed wanted to fire Benny, Captain Jason investigated Jamie’s concerns, but decided to encourage Benny to step it up instead. Benny’s work ethics improved immediately after this conversation.
Captain Jason is easily one of Below Deck Down Under’s most valuable players. Thankfully, Captain Jason is returning for Season 2. Permission to quickly come aboard?
Chief Stewardess Aesha Scott
Chief Stew Aesha Scott first appeared on Below Deck Mediterranean as a stew. Throughout her seasons spent filming, her quirky nature and random spoken thoughts created reality television gold. Having Aesha back for Below Deck Down Under in a leadership role was a great casting decision.
Despite clashing with Chef Ryan and Magda, Aesha’s ability to provide a positive work environment while still remaining professional was consistent.
This Australian Chief Stew treated her interior department like she would a friend, as she desired to create a sense of family while onboard. While this may not have worked out with her third stew Magda, Aesha’s bond with second stew Tumi Mhlongo was tight.
Overall, Aesha was an excellent choice to lead up this spin-off. Thankfully, Aesha is also set to return for Season 2.
Second Stewardess Tumi Mhlongo
Tumi Mhlongo appeared in Season 1 as Aesha’s hard-working second stew. With a desire to one day live like a primary, Tumi’s humor and lighthearted quips added greatly to this spin-off. In addition, Tumi’s tablescape skills were the visions of Captain Sandy Yawn‘s dreams.
Tumi’s kindness and laid back nature, however, did not make her this stewardess a push over. In the galley, Tumi was the only cast member who could give Chef Ryan his snark right back without a fight ensuing. She also brought a sense of peace during meal prep and service times, calming Ryan down as needed.
We salute a kind, bold spirit.
Even though Magda proved difficult at times, Tumi remained calm, showing her co-worker the ropes without displaying any signs of frustrations along the way. As for praises received while onboard, Aesha had many positive remarks for Tumi. One being that if she could have had two Tumi’s this season, her workload would have been so much easier.
Sadly, Tumi is not on the cast list for Below Deck Down Under’s Season 2. We have nothing nice to say on this.
Deckhand Culver Bradbury
Just like Tumi, Deckhand Culver Bradbury was a calming, kind addition to the Below Deck Down Under cast. Similar to Captain Jason, Culver was also a family man. Onboard, he face-timed his loved ones often, while always speaking highly about his mother. In fact, when Chef Ryan’s time was up, Culver even joked that his mom should be brought onboard as the chef.
Throughout Season 1, Culver entertained the charter guests shirtless while dressed as a pirate, fixed plumbing issues on the yacht, and completed his deckhand duties without any fuss.
Unfortunately, following in Tumi’s path, Culver was not asked back for Season 2. If any firings occur, hopefully Culver and Tumi are the first ones called.
TELL US – WHO WERE YOUR BELOW DECK DOWN UNDER MOST VALUABLE PLAYER(S) PICKS? ARE YOU SAD TO SEE TUMI AND CULVER GO?
