'Below Deck' Chief Stews Over the Years: Hannah Ferrier and More (2024)

There's no Below Deck without chief stews — but some have lasted longer on the show than others.The hit Bravo series, which premiered in 2013, follows the lives of crew members who reside and work on a superyacht during charter season. Below Deck has become a major franchise for the network with spinoffs including Below Deck Sailing Yacht, Below Deck Down Under and Below Deck Adventure.Each season viewers are introduced to new crew members — but usually the captain and the chief stew stay the same. Kate Chastain joined Below Deck in its second season and quickly became a fan favorite alongside Captain Lee before her shocking exit in 2020.Meanwhile, Below Deck Med became a hit in part because of Hannah Ferrier's presence. Hannah appeared on the spinoff from its first season, however, a tumultuous working relationship with Captain Sandy led to her season 5 departure.“When I was watching [the scene where I got fired] with [my husband] Josh, he’s like, ‘Did you just yawn?’ I’m like, ‘I think I did.’ He’s like, ‘You just yawned in the middle of getting fired for drugs, Hannah,’” the former reality star, who got fired after bosun Malia White reported her for having a pack of Valium and a vape pen, told Decider in August 2020. “Yeah. I was like, ‘You’re kind of boring me. Let’s go.’”Scroll down for a guide to every chief stew in Below Deck history:

Viewers were introduced to Adrienne on the first season of Below Deck. Adrienne struggled to gain the respect of her interior team — Kat Held and Samantha Orme — and ultimately didn’t return as a chief stew. She made a brief but memorable appearance during season 2 as a friend of the charter guests who stirred up drama between Kat and Amy Johnson.

After Adrienne didn’t return for season 2, Kate took her place and quickly won over Bravo fans with her snark and “rocket ships” made out of blankets. Her close bond with Captain Lee was a constant on the show but all good things must come to an end.

Kate was already considering a change while filming season 7 — a.k.a the infamous Brü Crew season. She ultimately ended up at odds with chef Kevin Dobson and bosun Ashton Pienaar — who infamously punched a wall after getting mad at her. The season, which aired in 2020, received major backlash and Kate announced her exit after it aired.

She has remained at the network though with various other shows including Bravo’s Chat Room, Traitors, Below Deck Galley Talk and Couch Talk With Captain Lee and Kate. In 2023, Kate expanded her family by welcoming son Sullivan.

Being the chief stew to take over for Kate was no easy task for Francesca during her brief Below Deck stint. She seamlessly formed a connection with Captain Lee after joining My Seanna but crumbled under the pressure hours into the charter season.

Francesca also struggled with her stew Elizabeth Frankini, whose feelings for deckhand James Hough clouded her judgment in the workplace. Francesca finally got to fire Elizabeth toward the end of season 8, which didn’t actually matter since the COVID-19 pandemic caused the show to end filming early.

Similar to Francesca, Heather tried her best but was initially outshined by bosun Eddie Lucas, who returned to Below Deck after appearing in the OG seasons. Heather left a less than stellar impression after she used the n-word while talking to deckhand Rayna Lindsey. She apologized but the damage was already done and Heather wasn’t invited to film another season.

After being Heather’s second stew, Fraser got promoted ahead of season 10. He had his work cut out for him with Alissa Humber and Camille Lamb’s messy feud, which didn’t get any easier when Captain Lee left the boat amid health issues. The captain was replaced by Below Deck Med’s Captain Sandy and she quickly blamed Fraser for issues on board St. David.

Fraser waited Sandy out and was reunited with Lee before the season came to an end. He returned for season 11 but this time with Captain Kerry from Below Deck Adventure as his boss.

Since season 1 of Below Deck Med, Hannah has been in the gallery representing the interior team. From a secret relationship with a charter guest to feuds with her coworkers, Hannah always understood the reality TV assignment. Hannah was largely the face of the series before being let go for having Valium and a CBD vape pen in her cabin.

After her exit, Hannah got engaged and married to Josh Roberts. The couple also welcomed their first child, daughter Ava.

Bugsy returned to the franchise as a stew to help Hannah out during the fifth season of Below Deck Med. Captain Sandy promoted Bugsy to chief stew after Hannah’s exit and she was in charge of the interior team until the charter season ended.

Season 6 kicked off with Katie taking over for Hannah. During her debut season, Katie had issues gaining control of stew Lexi Wilson after she began to antagonize nearly everyone on the boat. Katie was also unable to communicate properly with Delaney Evans, who refused to be fired on multiple occasions.

Katie didn’t return to Below Deck Med but has since filmed season 3 of Winter House alongside Malia.

Tasha’s time in the Below Deck franchise was largely overshadowed by her complicated relationship with David White. The pair didn’t disclose that they were dating when they got on the boat and things only got worse when Tasha changed her mind about her feelings for David.

The chef unleashed his frustration by rage texting Tasha on multiple occasions while she attempted to get back with her ex-boyfriend — who she cheated on with David. Tasha didn’t appear at the season 7 reunion and hasn’t returned to the show.

After appearing on season 1 of Below Deck Down Under, Tumi was offered a chief stew role by Captain Sandy. She arrived a little late due to immigration issues, which meant Natalya "Nat" Scudder was asked to temporarily lead the interior. Nat handed the role back to Tumi but the duo ended up at odds as a result.

Below Deck Sailing Yacht became a successful spinoff after debuting in 2020, but Jenna didn’t stick around for the long haul. During the first season, she got caught up in a complicated relationship with Adam Glick. She also couldn’t find common ground with stews Madison Stalker and Georgia Grobler.

Jenna apologized for her behavior toward her interior team at the reunion while still standing by the decision to date Adam while on charter.

Taking over for Jenna, Daisy cemented herself as the perfect other half to Captain Glenn’s team. She was largely on good terms with most of her stews while bringing enough drama to keep viewers tuning into Below Deck Sailing Yacht.

In season 4, however, Daisy found herself caught in a love triangle with Colin Macrae and Gary King. The trio’s friendship imploded as a result and Daisy was the person Colin and Gary blamed at the reunion.

Following her time as a second stew under Hannah’s reign on Below Deck Med, Aesha became the chief stew alongside Captain Jason on Below Deck Down Under. Aesha, who has appeared in all seasons of the show so far, received praise for helping handle the season 2 consent incident involving Luke Jones, Margot Sisson and Laura Bileskalne.

Aesha returned to her Below Deck Med roots as the chief stew during season 9.

Below Deck Adventure was the newest spinoff series with Faye at the helm alongside Captain Kerry. Her biggest problem was a feud with chef Jessica Condy but it remains to be seen if Below Deck Adventure will return with more seasons.

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