Below Deck Sailing Yacht: Gary King's Job History, Hometown, IG & More
By & Updated Sep 1, 2026, 3:30 PM EDT follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap
Summary
- Gary King joined Below Deck Sailing Yacht in season 2 as first mate, bringing 12 years of yachting experience.
- From South Africa to Europe and beyond, Gary's work has taken him around the world, showcasing his expertise.
- Despite his playboy reputation, Gary's involvement in a sexual misconduct allegation has cast a shadow on his tenure.
Gary King joined the cast of season 2 in March 2026. He wasn't the only new crew member to join the show, as the only returning cast member from . Gary was named the first mate of the boat and worked alongside deckhands Sydney Zaruba and Jean-Luc Cerza Lanaux. Even though Gary may expect nothing but perfection from his teams, he always knows when it is time to let loose and have a little fun.
Arriving on the Parsifal III was nothing new to Gary. He has been working in the yachting industry for more than 12 years as a first mate and a captain on smaller boats. Gary tries his best to not get distracted at work, but crew drama can sometimes get the best of him, especially since he puts himself in the middle of love triangles and started problematic boatmances.
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Where Is Gary From?
He Grew Up In South Africa
According to , Gary was born and raised in South Africa but moved to New Zealand at an unknown time. At the age of 18, the first mate traveled to Europe during a gap year and ended up accepting his first job on a yacht. He started in the yachting industry as a way to make easy money but ended up enjoying the work and has been traveling the world ever since.
Some of the places Gary has traveled to for work include Spain, Greece, Cuba, Italy, New Zealand, and Norway. Through his experience, Gary has been able to captain smaller boats and run the deck on several busy superyachts. His 12 years of experience on the exterior of a boat have been apparent in the way he runs his deck team on the show. On the show, Gary has shown how exceptional he is at his job as the first mate, and he came back in as First Officer.
Gary's Instagram
Gary Is Active On Instagram
is on Instagram with the handle @king_gk. He has 254,000 followers on his verified account and posts regularly. Gary's most recent post was about his hair transformation, but he also recently met up with his mother in Europe and spent some time in Australia. While Gary does get support from Daisy in the comment, he also gets a lot of negativity in the comments from Below Deck viewers who don't like his character, and he has been known to engage with them in the past.
Gary's Boatmances
Gary Is A Playboy
Gary tends to lack self-control, especially when it comes to dating the crew. By the end of the second episode of BDSY season 2, one of the crew members – his deckhand, Sydney. The pair work closely together throughout the day, so the tension between them was definitely felt by the rest of the crew. However, Gary wasn't really interested in Sydney Zaruba and was hoping he could develop a closer bond with the third stewardess, Alli Dore.
Gary and Alli broke up shortly after the season was over, and Gary took up with Ashley Marti (via ) and Scarlett Bentley in season 3. Ashley was obsessed with Gary, but he did not return the sentiment, although the pair did hook up. In season 4, it was revealed that Gary hooked up with Daisy off-screen. That was brought up in season while Daisy was carrying on a romance with Engineer Colin MacRae, which caused a messy love triangle.
Gary has been in the yachting industry for over a decade, so it is no surprise he has been successful during his time on Below Deck: Sailing Yacht. He has been working on boats since he was a teenager, and it seems as though he does not plan on leaving the industry anytime soon. Plus, makes him all the more attractive to Bravo - but he has ruined his reputation, possibly for good.
Gary's Controversy After Below Deck Sailing Yacht Season 4
There Is A Sexual Misconduct Allegation Against Him
After Below Deck Sailing Yacht season 4 aired, a Below Deck makeup artist came forward and accused Gary of sexual misconduct. The alleged incident took place in the Summer of 2026 before filming for season 4 started. The makeup artist, Samantha Suarez, claimed that Gary trapped her in his hotel room and tried to grab her from behind and stop her from leaving. She was able to get away and she notified the network.
Bravo said they looked into the incident and action was taken - the action being pulling Gary from BravoCon 2026.
Gary went on the defensive in quickly-deleted comments accusing Samantha of lying, which was not a good look. Below Deck Sailing Yacht season 5 was already supposed to have aired, which Gary was a part of, so it looks like a new season was filmed entirely, or they have edited Gary out of what they already filmed. Gary's bad behavior has effected the franchise for the worse, but he doesn't seem fazed by it other than disputing the allegations.
Below Deck Mediterranean airs Mondays at 9 p.m. EDT on Bravo.
Sources: , /Instagram, /YouTube
Cast
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Glenn Shephard - Colin Macrae
Seasons 5 Main Genre Reality-TV Expand Collapse
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