Original subtitles

Hello, Star Princess! All aboard...

Dee-dee-dee-dee-dee!

...Star Princess... It's massive. Shall we explore?

...where a young British... Make some noise!

Big ship, big adventures. ...and international crew...

I'm so busy. There's always adrenaline.

...work... That's one job ticked off my list. On to the next.

...without ever leaving home.

LAUGHING

There's a sea view on every shift.

Waking up in a new place every day? That doesn't happen to most people.

Life feels like a big dream at the moment.

But it's not all plain sailing...

Belize is cancelled.

Who wants to swim back to the ship?

I'm being a grumpy leprechaun.

...for the hundreds of shipmates...

...and thousands of passengers...

Sun is out.

SCREAMING

...sailing the stunning Caribbean.

You're getting to see the world for free and getting paid for it.

It's hard work, but it's so rewarding at the same time.

Woo!

Launched five months ago, Star Princess is the newest

and largest vessel in the Princess Cruises' fleet.

On board, a 1,500-strong crew with an average age of just 38...

How are you? Good, good? Hello.

Ah! I'm so busy.

...taking care of over 4,000 guests.

Who's here to have a good time this week?!

CHEERING

Crew members can be

on shift seven days a week...

Squeeze through those legs.

Keep going.

Ciao, Chef. Oh, that looks so good.

I'm going to sew some costumes because I have

a lot of things which need fixing.

...regularly clocking up 12-hour days.

It's been an early day for us all.

The ship is just over a week into

a 28-day voyage around the sun-soaked Caribbean...

...twice calling at awe-inspiring islands

in the east, and Central America and Mexico in the west.

BELL RINGS

Today, it's dropped anchor

in Amber Cove in the Dominican Republic.

Famed for its golden beaches,

it's the perfect stop-off for a day ashore for the guests.

But on board, there's no let-up for the crew.

Good morning, good morning! How's it looking?

Pull it down, like, an inch.

Pull it down a tiny bit. Yeah. At just 22,

Southport-born Melissa is one of the crew's youngest members.

No fingerprints. As you can tell,

I'm a perfectionist, so everything has to be perfect.

So being the events and guest services supervisor,

I look after all the events on board.

So we do weddings, we do renewal of vows,

we do legal ceremonies, we do symbolic ceremonies.

I'm going to take you down to deck three now,

which is where the florist is.

It's hard work, but it's so rewarding at the same time.

You're getting to see the world for free and getting paid for it.

Good morning! Wow, they look so beautiful.

You did a really good job. The hardest part of living

and working at sea is being away from my family for so long.

My mum is the most

amazing person I've ever met in my life.

Her work ethic and her personality is exactly the same as me.

When we're with each other, we just bounce off each other.

She's me mum.

MELISSA LAUGHS

And it's not just Melissa

who works hard setting up events on board.

This is your cruise director, Dan. It's St Patrick's Day today,

meaning there'll be

various Paddy's Day events around the ship.

Of all the celebrations, St Patrick's Day is one of

the liveliest in the ship's itinerary.

I'm from Irish heritage,

so I should know St Patrick's Day.

Oh, my word, this day is crazy.

Cruise director Dan from Essex is in charge of the entire operation.

We try to celebrate it as best as we can.

We put a load of decorations out.

They're the cheesiest decorations you've ever seen.

We do Irish quiz, Irish music, Irish cake.

Anything that we can to exploit this holiday,

we will do.

Oh, my gosh. Where's the end? Here.

27-year-old Amy from County Durham

has been working at sea for the past four years.

I actually used to work

as a fitness instructor back in the UK,

but I always knew that I wanted a job where I could travel.

But I'd never really been on a cruise ship.

I didn't really know too much about them,

so it was my best friend. She started to work on them first

and I was like, "Yeah, OK, let's give it a try."

And I never look back.

I could pinch myself every day that I get to do this.

As activity manager, Amy's been tasked

with decorating O'Malley's, an Irish pub on board.

I actually really quite like St Patrick's Day.

It's a big thing in the UK as well. I'm sticking it

more to my fingers, actually. Do you want me to help you on that?

Do you mind? Oh. thank you.

Giving her a hand is 23-year-old Mia from Hampshire.

Is it your first time doing St Patrick's Day on board?

Yeah.

Well, I'm glad I didn't put you on St Patrick's Day trivia.

Honestly, as soon as the schedule came out,

I was like, "Thank goodness."

Luca is from Serbia and I

think he knows more about St Patrick's Day than you.

Oh, dear. So this one's coming down?

With six separate venues on the ship to decorate...

No, no, that one's going to go up with that.

So it's like contrast.

...Dan has dropped in to check on progress,

but time is tight.

I actually have to go back to my job in a minute. I know,

but I'm vertically challenged, so it's just quicker if you do it.

It now does look like Christmas.

Not St Patrick's Day. Irish Christmas.

Are you going to match these on each one?

Oh, my OCD is going to go crazy. No. It's contemporary.

It's art, Dan. I think the decoration in O'Malley's

is a perfect example of how strong my team are.

You've just got to have the eye for...

Contemporary art, for St Paddy's Day.

Dan! Positive energy.

THEY LAUGH

They ordered me around

like I was not the cruise director, and that's absolutely fine by me.

So if you tape them underneath, they'll start to fall off.

If you tape them on top, they won't. Yeah.

Can you say one thing that's positive?

Well, no. Like, it's called gravity, right?

I like the fact that they felt comfortable

enough around me to put me

in my place a little bit, which sometimes I need.

LAUGHTER

While the activity team are prepping for tonight's festivities...

at the front of the ship is the 990-seat main theatre...

Welcome to... Hi. ..backstage.

The backstage.

...where the 16-strong entertainment cast

practise their routines almost daily.

We are doing a tech run of Meridian,

so we do a tech run of all our production shows

before we do them in the arena.

So this is the little chaos that ensues right before.

28-year-old cast manager Emma from New Zealand

has been dancing since the age of three.

I wanted to be a little dancing princess,

so I started doing ballet and I just never stopped.

Let's do this. Let's do it.

When I first started working on board,

dancing in rough seas was one of the hardest things to get used to.

Sometimes you'll jump and then the floor will move from

under you, so it's quite a surreal feeling.

At just 25, assistant cast manager Cassie

from Kansas

has been performing professionally for five years.

Countess Winsleigh. They've come

up with the most iconically British names possible.

I started dancing when I was two. For some reason,

I always, like, wanted to do a cruise ship.

Then one day I sent an email

off to Princess and a week later they were like,

"Here's the contract." And I was like, "Oh!"

And I ended up just really loving it.

Following in their footsteps

is fellow dancer, 25-year-old Lexie from Florida.

When I was 17, my dance studio went on a cruise ship,

and we got to be the entertainment for the night.

It was so cool. And then I was like, "Try it out and see what happens."

So I auditioned and Princess said, "Here you go."

I feel like it's going to sound

a bit cliche, but dance is just an escape for me.

And they always say, like, it's not a job if you love what you do.

And genuinely, I just truly love it.

There's no feeling like being onstage

and watching people enjoy your craft and making people smile.

I really, really love it.

Woohoo!

All good? Yes. All groovy.

After a busy morning,

some of the crew can finally snatch some time for themselves.

Right...

Massage therapist Charlotte, from Norfolk,

is a firm favourite with the hard-working

crew members in need of a fix.

Hello. How are you?

Oh, so good to see you.

And Melissa is the perfect candidate.

So where's your main area of concern?

I've got a little tweak in my shoulder. OK. Oh, yeah. Have a little look at it.

Oh, my goodness me. Yeah. Working every day for six months,

it can take its toll on your brain mentally,

um, and your body physically can get a little bit exhausted.

So how's your day been? Oh, it's been a bit crazy today.

6:00 start this morning. Oh, my gosh.

Do you know what? I don't remember the last

time I had a massage. It's been so long. Yeah. You're a...

Your poor body's been screaming for one, to be fair.

Oh, my God, that feels so good.

MELISSA LAUGHS

Melissa and Charlotte

have known each other for five months.

But on a busy ship,

there's not much time for a proper catch-up.

So what did you do before you came on the ship?

So I've had my own company for ten years.

No! Yeah. Really? Yeah. I worked a lot

with disability through

to professional athletes, so it was really good fun.

Did you do, like, sports therapy? Yeah.

So I'm basically an injury rehabilitation specialist.

Oh!

Two years ago,

36-year-old Charlotte came to a crossroads in her life.

So I had a bit of bad luck, really.

I'd dated terrible choices of men.

And I came out of a really long-term

relationship where it was very toxic.

And I ran away to London and I was

like, "I'm never going to date anyone."

And then I lost my father,

unfortunately. Oh! Oh, my goodness. Um...

Yeah, I lost my father.

And that was the worst thing that ever happened to me.

He was like my best friend. It was amazing.

And so I moved back to Norfolk and I just still felt lost.

I kind of ran away to sea.

That's how I ended up sort of...

And you never looked back. Never looked back.

It was like a new chapter, a new, fresh... breath of fresh air.

I feel like I've fulfilled my purpose.

And I would recommend running away to sea to anyone if you're lost.

Relax your head. Make it heavy.

CRACKING, MELISSA GASPS

Beautiful.

THEY LAUGH

Having run away to sea, she developed her side hustle,

spinning a very different kind of disc.

A lot of my friends in Norwich were DJs

and it was one of those things where I...

...I just had such a passion and love for.

It picks up really, really quickly and now - DJ Blondie!

After DJing at crew events below deck,

Charlotte is now keen

to show off her talents to the guests.

I hate you. But first, she'll need to win over the big brass.

So I was thinking maybe asking Dan if I could play the silent disco.

Oh! I think that'd be so much fun. No way! Yes. That'd be so sick.

Because obviously we do the silent discos for the crew.

Yeah. We do. But why not do the guests?

So silent disco is basically where you get two channels.

Each channel has a different DJ.

The idea is that you're competing against each other to...

...to basically see who can win.

The guests are going to love it, you know?

I think it'll be fun.

I need to pitch the idea first and see what he says.

And charming Dan isn't going to be easy.

Dan... being a grumpy leprechaun.

And this is why I'm going to leave you to...

Have an Irish coffee. You'll feel better.

Yeah.

But he is massively my superior. I, uh...

I need to put on the charm and be like, "So, Dan. Love me.

"I want to play." So we'll see what happens.

Watch this space.

The brand-new star Princess is on a grand

month-long voyage sailing around the Caribbean.

The guests have been on board for just over a week,

and today the ship has docked at

Amber Cove in the Dominican Republic,

where guests can relax at all-inclusive resorts

or sample the local culture in brightly coloured streets.

Hello! Oh, it's nice and warm here, innit? Oh, nice bit of sun.

After a busy morning, some of

the crew have finally found time to disembark.

We're going out into Amber Cove today.

We're going to the beach. Woohoo!

It'll be quite nice to just go and touch my feet

in the sand for a little bit, you know?

And it's a beautiful day.

I'm definitely ticking off some of the things on my bucket list.

I'm only 22, so just to have the opportunity

to see as many places in the world,

like the eagles in Alaska and all of the,

um, culture in Mexico and all of the wildlife in the Caribbean.

So I'm very fortunate for that.

Joining Melissa and Charlotte

ashore is guest services officer, 25-year-old Lewis from Glasgow.

I'm very excited for it.

It's very nice for all of us just to get out,

relax a little bit, get some food

and have some time off ship together as well.

Look at the beach. Oh, my gosh. Guys, we made it.

Woo-woo! Freedom!

Look at the sand. I know. It's so nice.

A big part of being on

the ships is you're constantly at work, even when you're off duty.

So seeing the water and the sun

and spending time with my friends that I care about,

yeah, it's really nice.

This beats being in the office, doesn't it? Oh, much better.

Beats being in the spa, not going to lie. When was the last time you got off?

I actually... No, I can't actually remember.

Oh, my God. Honestly, it feels like a lifetime

we've been doing this contract, doesn't it?

It's really important

to have friendships and bonds on board with each other.

We're with each other for upwards of six to seven months.

So if we start fighting, it's going to be a little bit difficult.

I'm just glad I've got my feet on solid ground,

you know, instead of sailing all the time.

Yeah. Melissa, we are very good friends on board.

We work very close together. We're both in the UK,

so we get on very well with our backgrounds

at home from things like Percy Pigs.

It's things like that in common that we know about and that we love.

I must say it's nice to, uh,

to actually spend time with you guys.

I feel like I never see you ever. It's always about work.

It's always about... I think as well,

when we're all together, you just kind of get it.

It's just you guys are kind of like my home.

I miss you guys when I don't see you. Do you know what it is?

It's the accent for me. Mm-hm.

Yeah. It's, like, nice to hear a familiar accent

which reminds me of home.

And also as well, I find when we all get together,

because we speak so fast,

nobody else understands what we're talking about.

I haven't got a clue what you're talking about

half the time. THEY LAUGH

The crewmates on board, I can see it

in their faces when I'm talking to them.

They're just smiling, like, "Yeah, yeah."

And I'm like, "You don't know what I'm saying, do you?

"You have no idea." It does take me a minute.

I have to go, "What did he say, Lewis?" What did he say?"

But he does the same with me. So he's all right.

It's a two-way street. I do miss the food at home,

though. I can't lie. What's the first

thing you're going to eat when you go home? Roast dinner.

Oh! Oh, God. Yeah. My mum makes the best roast.

Oh, my God, I cannot wait. Oh, my God.

Proper Yorkshire puds as well. Oh, my God.

Yes, yes, yes.

Oh, I actually just... Oh, I miss home.

SHE LAUGHS

Working on the cruise ships,

we are miles and miles away from our friends and family.

And there's nothing...

...nothing better than seeing someone from your own country.

You end up becoming more than friends.

Having that immediate support network. Like, they're

your friends that you've literally met

four months ago and you're completely close with now.

It's really important.

I miss my family and everything, but I miss, like, the rain.

I miss, like, the dreary weather. A cosy day

in the house, not feeling guilty, you know? In the blankets.

Rain outside, watching a movie. It's like therapy, this, guys. Yeah.

Can't ask for anyone better to spend it with.

Oh, bless you. Love you, guys. Love you.

But it's not just the Brits who have bonded on board this ship.

Dancers Lexie, Cassie and Emma have ventured

to brightly coloured Umbrella Street.

OK.

The perfect spot to grab content for their socials.

SHE LAUGHS

Go, Lexie! Oh, my God!

That is so fun.

Looks weird!

Growing up in New Zealand,

one of the coolest things that really drew me

into working on board is that I'm free to go

and explore whatever land we wake up in.

Do you guys want to sit there? Sit on the chairs.

Oh, cute. OK.

And so working on board and being able

to come to all these incredible places,

I'm still sort of amazed that I get to do this all the time.

Just next to Umbrella Street is another photo op.

Wow, this is so cool. The paintings are really fun.

It's a million miles away from home for Cassie.

When I'm on the ships, to think

that I came from this, like, small farm town

and I was a small Kansas girl, as,

like, cliche as that sounds, I guess, it's really,

really crazy to think that I've been

to 32 different countries and I'm like, "Whoa!"

It's really cool. Really, really cool.

Clink.

Look at the eyes.

So this is really nice. Yeah. Like, the country and the

culture and... Yeah. So much colour.

...around here. Yeah. Yeah. It's just stunning.

We always say when you get off the ship,

you have to go somewhere where you can't see the ship.

So you really have that time to relax

and just enjoy what's in front of you,

rather than thinking

about going back on board and going back to work.

I will say, though, that the Caribbean,

I think, is the best itinerary for weather.

Yeah. Oh, my gosh. Alaska.

I was so cold everywhere I went on that trip.

I was like... SHE WHIMPERS

I think it's important to get off the ship with your friends

and to go and see things

because I think when you're on board,

it's like a bubble.

We all live in this, like, little town,

and you kind of forget that other things exist.

So when you get on land,

you can kind of recalibrate and refresh yourself.

With the ship heading to its next

exciting destination in just over an hour...

We should probably get going. OK. Yeah. Yeah.

...everyone needs to head back.

And as the vessel set sail,

on board, there's a fabulous evening lined up.

We're going to be partying all night.

St Patrick's Day

is getting under way, and everyone's dressed to impress.

We're from Ireland.

In the UK, we celebrate it.

But the Americans? They've commandeered this event.

St Patrick's Day is a sea of green.

You walk into the arena and everyone's wearing green.

The guests get involved. St Patrick's Day is the one

they probably get involved with more than any.

I saw some standout outfits which, um,

would not be appropriate to talk about on camera.

Not many cruise ships have an Irish pub,

but O'Malley's on deck seven is

the perfect place for this raucous event.

I can do a wee bit of an Irish jig, you know?

LAUGHTER

Edinburgh newlyweds Ross and Vishal are on their first cruise

TO mark ten years of being together.

They're travelling

with Ross's sister, Lisa, and her husband, Paul.

Doesn't it look nice? Yeah.

Go for it. Go for it.

You've just got to down the first one, apparently.

And for Ross, drinking a pint

of Guinness is another new experience.

Oh...

Lovely. ..lovely.

THEY LAUGH

Is it really?

Any excuse for a drink.

I mean, we are Scottish, but also...

Don't say it like that!

They're celebrating

with new friends Richard from Cardiff and Mancunian Kieran,

mates who travel together when the stars align.

How you doing? You having a good St Patrick's Day?

I was actually meant to be going with my ex.

We split up, so he was like my next person to come, too.

And we've always enjoyed our company, to be fair.

And we do like to party.

So he's the best person to come on the cruise.

I was the infill. I was second choice.

You were second choice, yeah.

I am having the best St Patrick's Day.

I've got my green cocktail.

I've just tried my first Guinness. You have not!

You've never had Guinness before?

And I think it'll be my last.

THEY LAUGH

I'm loving your outfits.

Did you, like, pre-plan this, because you are green,

top to bottom?

We just have a lot of green in our wardrobe.

It just happens to be our favourite colour.

We did not prepare.

The real question is, have you got on green underwear?

I-I...

I'll not sure. It just so happened

that we brought a lot of green for this trip.

We didn't plan to come on looking like a leprechaun.

Just sort of happened that way. I had a bit of a panic

because I forgot it was St Patrick's Day.

And then when I realised it was St Patrick's Day,

I was, like, tearing through my wardrobe.

I was like, "I've got nothing green."

The best I've come up with is I've got some green socks.

THEY LAUGH

The only thing I had was a green pair of socks.

You kind of had a green top.

I kept buying green drinks all day. We were like,

"Yeah, we're celebrating. Green drinks."

To St Patrick's Day.

ALL: Cheers!

They may have raised their glasses to Ireland.

All round, Baby Guinnesses!

But a whole new spicy adventure awaits in Mexico.

After an action-packed few days,

the sun has risen in another dream-filled destination.

Star Princess has sailed to

the tropical island of Cozumel in Mexico.

On board, it's an early start for 27-year-old

fitness instructor Caitlin from Gravesend.

My daily fitness routine... I always have to have breakfast

and a morning cup of tea because I'm a Brit,

so we have lots of tea.

And then I'll be teaching the morning classes.

Right arm is coming over the head. Link the hands together.

You're going to feel it stretch up the lat of that back.

We teach yoga, Pilates,

cycling classes, and we do that every single day.

Caitlin's been working at sea for three years,

leaving behind her parents

and identical twin sister Anneliese in Kent.

Lovely. Nice to meet you.

See you later. Hardest part of living on

a cruise ship for months at a time? Probably the missing

out on family back at home, I would say.

We could sometimes be here for ten months.

So by the time

you've finished your contract, nearly a whole year has passed by.

With family often far away,

friendships on board become key.

Ready, girls? Yeah. Let's go.

So let's just lay out some mats and stuff.

Dancers Cassie and Lexie have been on the ship for five months...

You've both done Pilates? Yes. Awesome.

...and hit the gym

daily to keep themselves performance ready.

Raise that glute. Three, two... Perfect.

Other side. Ready. Feel the burn? Woohoo!

There's a lot of discipline that comes into being a dancer.

Because if you don't eat properly,

then you're going to lose your muscle mass.

If you don't stretch every day,

you're going to lose your flexibility.

You come forward, pull back. Straight leg.

That's it. Come forward. Having this kind of job,

I do feel very, very lucky. I've seen lots of different places

I never thought I'd see in the world.

So to be able to experience it whilst doing

a job that you love is amazing to do.

What got you into, like, wanting to do PT on board?

I grew up with dance, like you girls.

And then I went into the gym industry

where I did, like, management of gym

and then I did body-building competitions.

Oh, that's crazy. Let me... I was going to say.

Let's see a picture. Let's see it.

Here.

GASPS

Stop.

Like, the tan just makes you look so much bigger.

It always brings out the muscular definition, doesn't it?

And do you know what I find really funny? I tell the guests

I've done body-building and they're like,

"You don't look like you've done body-building."

I go, "This hides it."

Body-building is challenging,

of course, because you have to be very disciplined.

It's a whole lifestyle. But the end result,

once you see yourself onstage and of course,

um, if you get a medal as well, it's a very good achievement.

But after life on land, Caitlin was up for a new challenge.

I was just kind of looking at other jobs online

and it popped up "fitness at sea".

So I just applied for it, see what it was.

And then here I am, four ships later.

Oh. That's so cool, though.

My favourite thing about life on a cruise ship is probably

the people that you meet

and the connections that you build.

On land, things like... You've known someone for two weeks. On board,

it may have only been two weeks, but you... Known them your whole life.

It's just very different.

I feel like life on board is hard sometimes within,

like, personal matters

or, like, relationship issues and stuff like that.

And I feel like that's the thing that people don't really

talk about a lot. See, it's very nice when you have, like,

friendship groups and stuff like that.

But it's also nice if you have someone on board.

Caitlin's in a year-long relationship

with crew manager Edgar from Mexico.

We managed to get together on this contract,

so it's very nice, after a long day,

just have him to go and chat about the day, like,

or if I am having a bad day to have just a cuddle.

I just recently went through

a break-up with a guy that I met on board,

and we had been together for almost two years

and we saw each other when we could,

but it was just getting to a point where it was like,

"Is this, like, worth it any more?"

You know? Because he was from England and I'm from America.

And so the travelling was hard

and our times off weren't aligning either.

And so, like, yeah, it was just hard.

I was heartbroken, and I still am heartbroken.

Um, but Lexie has been so great.

Lexie has definitely been...

She's probably so sick of me talking about it.

But that's what I'm here for.

Cassie on board is probably one of my closest friends,

and you become so close that you're not really friends any more.

You are family.

And I was there from the time that it happened until,

like, she kind of got back up on her feet.

Lexie will listen to anything I have to say,

and she reminds me every day that, like,

it's going to be fine, and I know it's going

to be fine now because of her as well.

On deck seven,

massage therapist Charlotte has her sights set on a personal

and professional challenge...

...DJing the ship's silent disco.

I would love to actually branch out and play for the guests.

I think it would be really good fun to just show us crew,

we have different talents, and not just keep talents

locked behind the doors in the crew areas.

Show the guests actually, yes,

I'm a massage therapist, but I'm going to play your songs.

But first, there's a little hurdle to jump in the form of the big boss,

cruise director and head of entertainment Dan.

Hello. Hey.

I have a proposition for you. So...

OK.

So you know I am the resident DJ for the crew?

Self-appointed. Self-appointed, obviously.

I've had an idea.

Would it be possible to maybe do a silent disco for the guests?

What do you think?

Uh, can you? Uh, yeah. Let's do it. I've got all the music.

Um...

You'd have to bat against DJ Will, though.

Yeah? He's a nice guy.

He is a nice guy, but he will take it very seriously.

Yeah. Good. I'm competitive. You're competitive?

I'm going to kill him. You're going to kill him?

All right. We don't need that.

Well, Charlotte loves DJing for the team-mates.

I think she's always wanted the opportunity to see

whether she could do it for the guests as well.

But I think there's always a concern.

Can she get over the nerves of doing it in front of the guests?

You think you're good enough? Yes.

It's going to be different equipment.

Yep. We'll have to look at what you're playing playlist-wise.

What you play in the crew bar, we can't always play upstairs.

We've got to just check with Will as to what he's playing,

so we can make sure that we've got two very separate channels.

Yeah. Well, out of respect, I'm going to ask DJ Will

if he's happy. 100%. Then...

...um...

We're all about giving opportunities, so let's do it.

Wonderful. Thank you. Appreciate it. I'll let you know.

Cool. Thank you. All right.

I'm so excited about potentially playing the gig.

But I'm saying "potentially" just in case there's any complications.

But so far, so good. We're going to smash it.

The crew on board Star Princess

are often away from home for months on end.

So friendships and relationships blossom.

Because we are spending so much time together,

a lot of people do find their partners on cruise ships.

Um, I'm still looking for mine...

...but, you know.

SHE LAUGHS

Thank you. My best, best friend on board is Edgar,

and we got together last contract.

We try to spend every day together.

Today, fitness instructor Caitlin is making a beeline

for the shore with her partner, crew manager Edgar.

EDGAR SIGHS CONTENTEDLY

Finally. This is beautiful, eh?

As Edgar is from Mexico,

Cozumel is the perfect place to step ashore.

And there's just one thing on his mind.

I'm really, really hungry. So what are we eating today?

Finally going to try something spicy?

No. I don't do spicy.

When I was a kid growing up in the '70s, in Mexico,

and I kept seeing the cruise ship coming in,

and my dream was like, "One of

"these days I'm going to sail away on one of those."

And here I am, 24 years since I joined the company.

I love it.

Ah. It's just nice to be here.

I really needed this.

It's been very, very busy. The whole week, it's been very busy.

When me and Edgar first met on our last contract,

he kept popping up in the gym, and he kept just joking around

with me and the other fitness I was working with at the time.

It was like, "I think he fancies you."

And I said, "Me?! No. No way."

And I start talking to her

and talking to her and getting along and, uh...

...and somehow we click.

After that contract, I left and went home.

And then Edgar messaged me and he said,

"Do you want to fly over and see me again on the ship?"

So he flew me over to Alaska. At that point,

I was like, "OK, this man's very, very serious."

Ah! Burrito. Burrit...

THEY LAUGH

If our time off does match up,

then obviously that's when we go out.

We don't get to do it as much

as we would like, but when we do it, we cherish it.

Oh, you're going to love that one.

Wait. Pina colada and...? Yeah. It's pineapple.

She is a very happy person. She matches my craziness.

And when we come to each other, we escape the stress of the work.

When we find each other, it's like, this is our place, our area.

Cozumel is very colourful. It is beautiful.

I think it's the perfect way to see Mexico.

Our time

in Mexico is always try to go and find something good to eat.

Please join us. We heard amazing things about here.

Well, let's not disappoint anyone today, mate.

We'll try somewhere different every time.

And he will normally order for me. So this is spicy?

Uh-oh. For me, when it comes to spicy food,

I think, "Why am I crying when I'm eating?"

No. You'll die.

HE COUGHS It is spicy.

Me and Edgar are very opposite,

but we go very well together and I like to have a laugh,

I like to have fun, and we just love

to learn about each other's home life.

It's very different,

how he grew up to how I grew up. Grew up right next to the ocean.

So for us, eating seafood, it was every day.

It's actually... We had a full fried fish for breakfast.

No, I'd never eat fish for breakfast.

So what do you eat? English breakfast.

Now we're talking bacon... OK. Yes. I like that.

Secret to success of a relationship on board?

Obviously, you're in each other's space all the time here, right?

So it's kind of like straight away, you're living together.

Never thought I'd be with a Mexican, no.

THEY LAUGH

It feels nice. It feels quite beautiful.

And this was the first time you said, "I love you."

Oh, you save it. Yeah!

So future for me and Edgar, obviously it's just trying

to request to get on the same ship again

and see where it goes. Yeah, very exciting times ahead.

We can stay here for dinner. No, we need to go back to the ship.

Do we? Yes.

Let's go. Let's go.

On board, Charlotte's also keen to chat to her boyfriend, Gary,

who's currently working on another ship.

Hello. How are you? I miss you. I miss you, too. Yeah.

I came out of a really long-term relationship, and then I was like,

"I'm never dating everyone ever again." And then I just...

I met the most wonderful chap on my first day

of embarking on my first-ever ship in Hong Kong.

There was just something about this gentleman.

He was, like, kind. He was very patient.

You know, when he walked in a room, everyone listened to him.

And I was like, "This is the kind of man

"that has quite similar traits to my father."

I was like, "I feel like my direction in life is

"going in the right way." So, yeah, I can't complain.

And it seems things are just getting better

and better for Charlotte.

I asked Dan if I could DJ

for one of the guest events and he said I could.

I'm so excited. I'm a bit nervous, though.

Oh, no way! Yeah. I'm a bit nervous, though.

The only problem is that they've just ordered

a whole load of new equipment,

and I think I might be playing on that. Yeah.

So it's going to be interesting to see whether my music choices fits

in with what the guests want as well.

I'm sure you'll smash it.

I really wish I was there to help support you,

and at least I'll be there in about a month and a half now.

Not long to go. I know. Can't wait.

Compared to other people who have relationships,

I'm very, very fortunate that I get to see him on a regular basis.

So the longest that we've been apart is three and a half months.

So when you think about it,

it's not actually that bad. But I speak to him every day.

So, yeah, it's easy, easy, easy.

You never know. I might be a DJ after this.

SHE LAUGHS

Exactly. Yes. Yeah, yeah.

Fingers crossed for you. Love you. Have a good evening.

Love you, too. Bye-bye.

As Charlotte heads off to get ready

for tonight's silent disco, down on deck seven,

preparations are under way. Everyone's aware

of everything that's going on with silent disco tonight, yeah?

Can you call her up because she

needs to put people on that now.

But as the silent disco is a last-minute addition,

the team need to make activity manager Amy aware.

It's one that's been added in, Amy.

It's because it's not... it's not in the system.

Oh, God.

HE LAUGHS

It's full steam ahead as Star Princess lifts anchor

in Mexico to continue its month-long

journey around the Caribbean. After a relaxing day ashore,

there's even more fun to be had on board for the guests.

Good evening, seafarers. This is your cruise director, Dan.

Just stopping by to let you know of some of the events you can

find this evening on board Star Princess.

And it is a big one ahead. Tonight, we do have a special bonus.

Silent disco in the Dome from 11pm

to midnight is DJ Will versus DJ Blondie, competing

in battle of the DJs - silent disco.

And massage therapist Charlotte is raring to go.

Hopefully good vibes, good energy and songs that everyone likes.

So, uh, I'm looking forward to it. I'm really excited, actually.

Yeah. It's nice. I love playing music.

It just kind of gives me this internal calmness.

Silent discos have become

popular wherever you are around the world,

whether it's on cruise ships or on land.

People love it, and you can't argue with that.

So we do it, you know, three or four times a cruise and it packs out.

It's crazy.

I mean, look at this. Amazing.

She'll be battling it

out against rival DJ Will. Hello. How you doing?

How you doing? Nice to see you. Whenever you are ready.

Let me get set up.

But the brand-new equipment is proving problematic.

This one here is not playing. So if you see that the channel

is not coming through, no music. NERVOUS LAUGHTER

Don't you just love a bit of drama?

So, uh, we're only coming through one channel.

So there's meant to be two channels and only one one's working,

so we've just had to reset everything, so hopefully it'll work.

As Charlotte struggles to get started...

...ten decks below, in the arena,

the dancers are about to begin a performance of their own.

The entertainment team, they create magic on this ship.

I could not be more lucky to have this team.

They are remarkable human beings.

I wouldn't say

that I get nervous any more doing any of the shows, really.

We've been doing them for a long time now

and we spend a lot of time rehearsing them,

but I still get excited to do it.

You still get that little feeling when you're about to go onstage.

Places, everyone!

ANNOUNCER: Now, fair travellers, take a deep breath of sea air

and let the winds of imagination carry you away.

Meridian is one of the production shows that we do on board,

and I would best describe it

as like bringing Bridgerton to the modern world.

Um, it is a love story that happens on board a ship.

It's not super serious.

So we get to be a bunch of different characters in one show.

Away we go!

For myself, the biggest challenge in Meridian, really

having to play not just one character.

We have a few different scenes where we have

to kind of embody these different characters through dancing,

and not only through dancing,

but just through standing there and reacting to

the actors onstage.

That was a real challenge for me, to figure out how

to sort of act rather than have to dance.

The, like, character that you have to bring to it is so fun.

And we really put ourselves into those characters as well.

And I think that's the funnest thing, is you get

to show a little bit of personality onstage, too.

I have five different characters

within the show, but each character is a completely different character.

So when I first start the show, I'm considered high society,

and then I go into it and now I'm a sailor,

and then we go into another scene

and now I'm, like, one of the waitstaff.

I think that the most challenging thing

about Meridian is the set changes and, like, the quick costume changes.

We have to run down to deck six, sprint

to the dressing room. I have to get changed from a number,

and then grab all of our props

and everything and sprint back onstage.

And then we have to pretend like we're not out

of breath to be able to start the next section.

On our costume, I have, like, three pieces on

and a hat and shoes and socks,

and I have to run off and I have to get all of those off

and put on another outfit that's three pieces.

And then you come onstage and you're like, "Ta-da!"

APPLAUSE

While the performers call it a day,

things are just getting started at the silent disco.

We're only using the red and the blue channels.

Is that OK?

Among the revellers are newlyweds Ross and Vishal.

I am embarrassed to admit

this actually will not be our first silent disco.

I have always maintained that I would never do it.

I've always thought it was very embarrassing,

but actually when you're in it, you really get into it.

I was screaming. So I'm very much looking forward to tonight.

But before the disco can start,

Charlotte needs to get the decks working.

MUSIC SLOWS TO A STOP

Let's try line A.

Oh, there you go. I think we're good to go.

Yeah. Working.

Are you ready? Let's go. Let's get this open. OK.

Well, a very good evening, Star Princess.

How are we doing tonight?

CHEERING

Well, please welcome DJ Blondie on the red channel.

CHEERING

While Charlotte plays the red channel,

DJ Will is on blue.

Oh, I can see the energy.

Blue party people out there.

Oh, blue is better. Nah, she's losing me.

Losing me. If she's going to turn

the room red, Charlotte needs to up her game.

CHARLOTTE: I need to find something good. So much rock music.

I can't be playing that. Terrible.

Oh, this is a good song.

This is a good song.

Party people, this is DJ Blondie!

Come on, let's make some noise!

Go, red. Yes.

Slowly getting there.

I'm team red. Switch to red.

Yes! We're going red.

We're going red!

"Let's put another banger," and then next minute it exploded.

I had the crowd. It was amazing.

And I was like, "This is my... this is my place.

"I'm meant to be here."

She's by far the better DJ. She's doing this boy out of a job.

Come on!

The gig was unbelievable.

Honestly, I...I cannot tell you how proud I am.

I mean, Will was smashing

it the whole way through. He had blue, blue, blue, blue,

blue and then just right at the end, smashed it.

It was amazing.

CHEERING

Let's give it up for DJ Blondie!

CHEERING

DJ Blondie in the house. That was such a good party.

I would definitely give her the job.

Ah! It was amazing. I had the best time.

Yeah, it was so good.

So happy. And beats being in the spa. Don't tell my manager.

I'm gutted Dan's not here,

but I know he's going to get some good feedback

and I've had some good feedback from some of the party people.

So, yes, I hope... I hope he lets me do it again.

I'm so... Oh! Buzzing! Buzzing!

Next time, Star Princess heads to Belize...

Reluctantly, I'm aborting the call into Belize.

...where bad weather causes problems.

Belize is cancelled.

And emotions run high as the final curtain falls.

Sobbing like a baby.

THEY CHEER

Subtitles by Red Bee Media