‘Below Deck Mediterranean’ Season 11 gets emotional as crew member learns about mother’s cancer diagnosis
‘Below Deck Mediterranean’ Season 11 Episode 2 featured Joe Bradley receiving a text from his sister, Indi. “Joe. Mom left you a message. Go to your cabin before you listen," the text read. Soon, Joe went to his cabin and listened to the voice memo from his mother. “Hi, son. I want you to listen to me…I went for a mammogram. It’s cancer…I’m fine. I’m gonna fight it. I’m your mom, and I'm not going anywhere. I love you.” While listening to the memo, Joe rushed off the yacht. He told fellow cast member Nathan Gallagher and Captain Sandy that he needed to “step off.” As he made a call to his sister, the Captain and Nathan wondered what had happened. “I wanna go check on him,” said Nathan. In the meantime, Joe told his sister that he could get a flight the same day, but she insisted that he “stay put.”
When Nathan went to see Joe, he broke down, “My mum’s got breast cancer, bro.” He comforted Joe and told him that he should do whatever he needed to do. On the phone, Joe’s sister told him what their mother said, “First thing she said to me was, ‘Make sure he finishes (the charter).’ When they know the start date of the treatment, I’m gonna be there.” Fellow crew members, including Captain Sandy, discussed Joe's close relationship with his mom. After his call with his sister, Joe FaceTimed his mom. Listening to her voice made Joe break down again. While he insisted on returning home the same day, his mother told him not to. “I want you to stay, because you can’t do anything here,” she added. Captain Sandy went up to Joe and hugged him. She also spoke with Joe’s mom and told her about her friend who’s a surgeon at Hopkins.
In a confessional, Captain Sandy shared, “This is devastating news. He’s very close to his mom.” She added, “When you hear the word ‘cancer,’ all you can hear is that word. People who work on a boat is crew. Yes, of course, we have a job to do, we have charters to do. But we’re still human. And I care deeply for them.” After talking to Joe, Sandy immediately dropped a voice memo to her friend, Dr. Pam Wright, and told her about Joe’s mother. Later, she also got the doctor to speak to Joe, who said that Captain Sandy sharing the contact felt “quite reassuring.”
Witnessing how devastated Joe was after learning about his mom’s diagnosis, Nathan told the cameras, “I feel like your differences go aside when you can see someone that upset. I’ve gone through it with my mom as well…all the bulls**i aside, I actually care for someone that used to be my friend.” Joe got emotional while opening up to the cameras about the situation. “This is my mom. This is my everything. The pain in her voice, when I can’t help…I care a lot for my mom,” he noted. Joe also reflected on how his mom singlehandedly raised him along with his siblings while working three jobs.
