‘Below Deck Sailing Yacht’: Paget Berry and Ciara Duggan Share What It Was Really Like to Work With Parker McCown

First mate Paget Berry and deckhand Ciara Duggan from Below Deck Sailing Yacht revealed that working with deckhand Parker McCown was a challenge.

Berry and Duggan were already working on the boat before the rest of the crew arrived. Both had considerable experience and learned McCown, who joined the deck team, was a pretty green crew member. McCown was upfront with his experience but also extremely eager to learn. Throughout the season, he’s seen giving a tremendous amount of effort. But he’s also seen giving his opinion on a number of occasions.

Offering opinions in yachting to your superiors is definitely not appreciated or welcomed. When McCown recently had a string of outbursts, he had a meeting with Captain Glenn Shephard. Shephard told McCown he needs to keep his opinions to himself and just get on with the work at hand. Berry and Duggan, who worked side-by-side with McCown agree.

McCown had a hard time just ‘getting on with it’

Berry and Duggan revealed what it was really like to work with McCown on Colin Macy-O’Toole’s Radio Check podcast. Macy-O’Toole wondered what Berry thought about the discussion McCown had with Shephard about leaving his opinions at the door and just getting to work.

“If you’re to that point in the season, with the captain and he’s asking you to put your best foot forward, I think you have to put your hand up and say, ‘Yeah, I haven’t been good enough,’ for whatever reason,” Berry remarked. “And you just gotta take it on the chin and be the bigger man.” And then move on and prove everyone wrong by getting to work.

Berry added, “With Parker, he’s got a big heart and is a great guy. And I’m happy I spent time with him outside of work. But I tried to take him under my wing the best I could in the beginning.”

Adding that he taught McCown a tremendous amount that was not seen on the show. “And some of the most important things went in one ear and out the other.” Duggan added, “You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink.”

They don’t think they unfairly targeted McCown either

Macy-O’Toole pointed out that some social media comments centered on how Duggan and Berry were perhaps too hard on McCown or that they bullied him. “We’re absolutely not the bully types,” Duggan insisted. “We’re very black and white when it comes to work. It’s like this is how the job needs to be done. This is how you need to do it.”

“But it’s never meant in a personal sense,” she continued. “We never said at any point, ‘Oh Parker you’re s**t, you’re not good.’ We never said that. It’s like this is how the job needs to be done. Just do it.”

Berry added, “You either do it or can’t do it. Ciara and I wouldn’t have been in the industry for so long if we were bullies. We’ve got hundreds of friends who are yachties, we’re on very good terms. And sometimes it’s just a bad egg in the bunch.”

McCown’s reaction to the ‘breastfeeding’ joke could have gotten him fired

As for that breastfeeding joke? Berry said McCown thought it was funny. “The joke was originally between Jenna [MacGillivray] and Parker and at the time, he found it funny,” Berry recalled.

“He joked about it on quite a few occasions,” he added. “So when I was told do I think it was funny. Well, sorry if you’re 26 years old and you’re breastfed, it’s kind of funny.” But McCown exploded on Berry, telling him to f**k off, which Berry and Duggan said would normally get you fired.

Below Deck Sailing Yacht airs on Monday at 9/8c on Bravo.