WEBVTT 0 00:00:04.495 --> 00:00:07.055 Sammy Catelylin: Ahoy. Ahoy to all you smooth sailors out 1 00:00:07.095 --> 00:00:09.359 there. And welcome aboard the decktales 2 00:00:09.407 --> 00:00:12.079 podcast. I'm your host and 3 00:00:12.127 --> 00:00:14.671 captain Sammy Catling and this is the show 4 00:00:14.823 --> 00:00:16.999 where you usually get to hear crew members 5 00:00:17.047 --> 00:00:19.375 from all walks of life share their best and 6 00:00:19.415 --> 00:00:22.039 worst stories from their time spent at sea. 7 00:00:22.207 --> 00:00:25.183 Not today, though. Today I wanted to 8 00:00:25.199 --> 00:00:27.599 do something a little different, as I figured 9 00:00:27.687 --> 00:00:30.407 I would give you a bit more context as to how 10 00:00:30.431 --> 00:00:33.125 the show came to be, my reasons for doing 11 00:00:33.165 --> 00:00:35.665 it, and my hopes for the future with it. 12 00:00:35.965 --> 00:00:37.853 Normally I share these insights with the 13 00:00:37.869 --> 00:00:39.973 people I interview, which I always cut from 14 00:00:39.989 --> 00:00:41.773 the edit because no one wants to hear a 15 00:00:41.789 --> 00:00:44.237 broken record. But I share these things with 16 00:00:44.261 --> 00:00:46.413 them because I like to give my guests that 17 00:00:46.469 --> 00:00:48.717 personal reassurance that my reasons and 18 00:00:48.741 --> 00:00:50.917 motivations for doing this show are, uh, with 19 00:00:50.941 --> 00:00:53.877 the best of intentions. But as the 30th 20 00:00:53.941 --> 00:00:56.621 episode is just a couple days away, I thought 21 00:00:56.653 --> 00:00:58.765 it made a lot more sense if I just tell 22 00:00:58.805 --> 00:01:01.347 everyone at the same time rather than just 23 00:01:01.451 --> 00:01:04.283 constantly repeating myself. First of 24 00:01:04.299 --> 00:01:07.035 all, who am I? And why do I have the 25 00:01:07.075 --> 00:01:09.699 audacity to think I can just interview crew 26 00:01:09.747 --> 00:01:12.451 from everywhere? Why are they in some 27 00:01:12.483 --> 00:01:14.803 cases telling me their private personal 28 00:01:14.899 --> 00:01:17.203 stories, their embarrassing moments, and the 29 00:01:17.219 --> 00:01:19.295 stuff they wish that they could just forget? 30 00:01:19.595 --> 00:01:22.363 Well, I don't know exactly, and I don't know 31 00:01:22.379 --> 00:01:24.699 if it's enough of a reason, but a few years 32 00:01:24.747 --> 00:01:27.003 back, I wrote a book called Seems Like Smooth 33 00:01:27.059 --> 00:01:29.931 Sailing, a retrospective memoir, all about my 34 00:01:29.963 --> 00:01:32.907 first ever ship contract back in 2006, 35 00:01:33.051 --> 00:01:35.179 where I did a 10 month straight contract 36 00:01:35.267 --> 00:01:38.043 working as an entertainer. The elevator pitch 37 00:01:38.099 --> 00:01:40.579 for the book is that it's kind of like the TV 38 00:01:40.627 --> 00:01:43.587 show the In Betweeners, but at sea. And as 39 00:01:43.611 --> 00:01:46.215 I joined the ships at the tender age of 19, 40 00:01:46.595 --> 00:01:48.747 I was at the time the youngest crew member, 41 00:01:48.850 --> 00:01:51.267 on board, which meant I was mothered by 42 00:01:51.331 --> 00:01:53.943 almost every woman on that ship. And having 43 00:01:53.999 --> 00:01:56.623 just left the family nest, I was so gullible 44 00:01:56.679 --> 00:01:59.351 that I was teased, taunted and tested by 45 00:01:59.423 --> 00:02:02.111 practically everyone else. The book is 46 00:02:02.183 --> 00:02:04.391 available in paperback and is also now on 47 00:02:04.423 --> 00:02:06.727 Audible, which I personally narrated and 48 00:02:06.751 --> 00:02:08.983 edited. Uh, thank you. So, if you fancy a 49 00:02:08.999 --> 00:02:11.119 laugh, you can read or hear all about my own 50 00:02:11.167 --> 00:02:13.567 personal start to ship life. How I first got 51 00:02:13.591 --> 00:02:15.863 the job, what I went through, how I lost my 52 00:02:15.879 --> 00:02:18.095 virginity, a whole chapter on the stupid 53 00:02:18.135 --> 00:02:20.543 questions guests ask, uh, the crew, and much, 54 00:02:20.599 --> 00:02:23.451 much more. When I finished writing 55 00:02:23.483 --> 00:02:25.947 the book, I ran a small crowdfunding campaign 56 00:02:26.051 --> 00:02:27.899 which attracted the attention of a few 57 00:02:27.947 --> 00:02:30.187 different types of publishers. So I picked 58 00:02:30.211 --> 00:02:32.307 the one I liked the most and was able to get 59 00:02:32.331 --> 00:02:34.875 the ball rolling from there. The day the book 60 00:02:34.915 --> 00:02:36.299 launched could not have been more 61 00:02:36.347 --> 00:02:38.915 serendipitous as the day of publication 62 00:02:38.995 --> 00:02:41.243 happened to be that moment in time when the 63 00:02:41.259 --> 00:02:43.667 world was brought to a standstill and we were 64 00:02:43.691 --> 00:02:46.147 all ordered to stay indoors as it marked the 65 00:02:46.171 --> 00:02:48.705 beginning of lockdown for us here in the UK. 66 00:02:48.835 --> 00:02:51.025 March 24, 2020. 67 00:02:53.805 --> 00:02:56.133 The most ironic thing about having a book 68 00:02:56.189 --> 00:02:58.133 about cruise ships come out at the start of 69 00:02:58.149 --> 00:03:00.693 the COVID pandemic was that it was the first 70 00:03:00.749 --> 00:03:03.605 time since Pre World War II that the industry 71 00:03:03.645 --> 00:03:05.665 had ever been brought to a halt. 72 00:03:07.245 --> 00:03:09.637 Since that time, these pleasure ships have 73 00:03:09.661 --> 00:03:12.205 been operating without a day off and with 74 00:03:12.245 --> 00:03:14.405 more and more people jumping on the bandwagon 75 00:03:14.445 --> 00:03:16.701 and expecting new things to do on board every 76 00:03:16.733 --> 00:03:19.465 year. Over time, they've been getting bigger 77 00:03:19.545 --> 00:03:22.433 and bigger and bigger. It took a global 78 00:03:22.489 --> 00:03:24.241 lockdown to finally stop them in their 79 00:03:24.273 --> 00:03:26.561 tracks. And it was the first time in modern 80 00:03:26.633 --> 00:03:28.377 history that no one could book to go on a 81 00:03:28.401 --> 00:03:31.257 cruise. And because of COVID it was the last 82 00:03:31.321 --> 00:03:33.205 place many people wanted to be. 83 00:03:34.065 --> 00:03:36.593 As events unfolded and the um, unprecedented 84 00:03:36.649 --> 00:03:39.449 times enveloped us all, my focus kept going 85 00:03:39.497 --> 00:03:41.401 back to the ships and what might be happening 86 00:03:41.433 --> 00:03:44.001 on board. I hadn't set foot on a cruise ship 87 00:03:44.033 --> 00:03:46.393 in 10 years, but it's literally all I could 88 00:03:46.409 --> 00:03:49.241 think about. I started to read uh, articles 89 00:03:49.313 --> 00:03:51.473 online about almost everything connected to 90 00:03:51.489 --> 00:03:54.025 the world of shipl life, seemingly forgotten 91 00:03:54.065 --> 00:03:56.761 by the rest of the world. And as I 92 00:03:56.793 --> 00:03:59.305 went day by day, I fell through the looking 93 00:03:59.345 --> 00:04:01.565 glass and opened Pandoras box. 94 00:04:01.905 --> 00:04:03.881 I started reading the stuff about the 95 00:04:03.953 --> 00:04:05.953 industry I never knew whilst working within 96 00:04:05.969 --> 00:04:08.273 it and all the kinds of things that they dont 97 00:04:08.329 --> 00:04:11.109 really want people to know. It was 98 00:04:11.157 --> 00:04:12.837 after a couple of months that I thought to 99 00:04:12.861 --> 00:04:14.941 myself it would make for a great follow up 100 00:04:14.973 --> 00:04:17.461 book to seems like smooth sailing and so I 101 00:04:17.493 --> 00:04:19.573 spent a long time researching and writing it 102 00:04:19.589 --> 00:04:22.309 up. The book picks up from where I left 103 00:04:22.357 --> 00:04:24.557 readers at the end of the first book and 104 00:04:24.621 --> 00:04:26.517 details the accounts of my career in its 105 00:04:26.581 --> 00:04:29.549 entirety. I've intermittently woven the 106 00:04:29.597 --> 00:04:31.597 information I learned about everything else 107 00:04:31.661 --> 00:04:34.333 throughout, Explaining the history of ships, 108 00:04:34.469 --> 00:04:36.637 traditions at sea and their origins, 109 00:04:36.781 --> 00:04:38.885 pollution stats and the many different types 110 00:04:38.925 --> 00:04:41.241 of it generated by the industry, tech 111 00:04:41.273 --> 00:04:43.705 innovations over the years, how the cruise 112 00:04:43.745 --> 00:04:46.361 lines stayed afloat during lockdown, how they 113 00:04:46.393 --> 00:04:47.977 treated the guests and crew during the 114 00:04:48.001 --> 00:04:49.965 pandemic and much, much more. 115 00:04:50.865 --> 00:04:53.177 I finished writing that book a while ago now 116 00:04:53.321 --> 00:04:55.593 and I've had no joy in finding a literary 117 00:04:55.649 --> 00:04:57.793 agent who can help me take my book to the 118 00:04:57.809 --> 00:05:00.801 next level. People have asked me why don't I 119 00:05:00.833 --> 00:05:03.081 just self Publish. And uh, my answer to that 120 00:05:03.113 --> 00:05:05.401 is, well, there's just so much research in 121 00:05:05.433 --> 00:05:07.601 this book that if I was the only one to stand 122 00:05:07.673 --> 00:05:09.971 behind it, then many would probably view it 123 00:05:10.003 --> 00:05:13.003 as being far less credible. For those of 124 00:05:13.019 --> 00:05:15.731 you who don't know what a literary agent is, 125 00:05:15.923 --> 00:05:18.067 essentially they are the middlemen between 126 00:05:18.091 --> 00:05:20.611 the author and the publisher. And uh, whilst 127 00:05:20.643 --> 00:05:22.355 it's not fair to paint them all with the same 128 00:05:22.395 --> 00:05:24.923 brush, I think it's fair to say that most of 129 00:05:24.939 --> 00:05:27.355 them would prefer to work on books that don't 130 00:05:27.395 --> 00:05:30.147 require any research to be fact checked and 131 00:05:30.171 --> 00:05:32.203 with people who have already got some kind of 132 00:05:32.259 --> 00:05:34.659 following on social media to maximise their 133 00:05:34.707 --> 00:05:35.775 return of investment. 134 00:05:37.315 --> 00:05:40.155 Literary agents are often inundated with 135 00:05:40.195 --> 00:05:42.227 submissions from budding writers who are 136 00:05:42.251 --> 00:05:44.987 hoping for a chance of success. And as most 137 00:05:45.011 --> 00:05:47.387 of these agents are overwhelmed as it is from 138 00:05:47.411 --> 00:05:50.011 this aspect of their job, more often than not 139 00:05:50.083 --> 00:05:52.099 it's the low hanging fruit that gets selected 140 00:05:52.187 --> 00:05:55.090 and pushed to bigger publishers. I was 141 00:05:55.090 --> 00:05:57.275 uh, asked many times by agents, how many 142 00:05:57.315 --> 00:06:00.003 followers did I have rather than how long did 143 00:06:00.019 --> 00:06:02.737 I spend writing and researching the book, how 144 00:06:02.761 --> 00:06:05.665 much vitamin D did I deprive myself of, and 145 00:06:05.705 --> 00:06:07.857 how many friends did I make excuses not to 146 00:06:07.881 --> 00:06:10.537 see because I was too busy working? Get your 147 00:06:10.561 --> 00:06:12.245 tiny violins out now, people. 148 00:06:18.225 --> 00:06:20.177 After a bunch of rejections, I thought to 149 00:06:20.201 --> 00:06:22.889 myself, okay, so I've told my story 150 00:06:23.017 --> 00:06:25.129 and the second book tells a bit more of it, 151 00:06:25.177 --> 00:06:27.921 plus the ship's story. But what about helping 152 00:06:27.993 --> 00:06:30.797 others to share theirs? The idea to host a 153 00:06:30.821 --> 00:06:32.829 show where I offered crew members past or 154 00:06:32.877 --> 00:06:34.901 present the chance to do this isn't a new 155 00:06:34.933 --> 00:06:37.829 idea by any means, but I strongly felt that 156 00:06:37.877 --> 00:06:39.581 after all that I'd read, um, and researched, 157 00:06:39.693 --> 00:06:41.813 the best way to go about it was not just to 158 00:06:41.829 --> 00:06:44.181 hear all of the good, but be open to hearing 159 00:06:44.213 --> 00:06:47.117 the bad as well. One thing a lot of 160 00:06:47.141 --> 00:06:49.685 people do not know is that anyone who signs 161 00:06:49.725 --> 00:06:52.413 up to work for a cruise line almost always 162 00:06:52.469 --> 00:06:55.445 has a defamation clause embedded within their 163 00:06:55.525 --> 00:06:58.251 contract. This means that if they have 164 00:06:58.323 --> 00:07:00.043 something terrible happen to them whilst they 165 00:07:00.059 --> 00:07:02.435 are at work, they can't report it to anyone, 166 00:07:02.515 --> 00:07:04.755 otherwise they could be sued. For this 167 00:07:04.795 --> 00:07:06.939 reason, it's probably why you haven't heard 168 00:07:06.987 --> 00:07:08.803 any of the horror stories about things that 169 00:07:08.819 --> 00:07:11.059 go on ships. And it's also the reason that 170 00:07:11.067 --> 00:07:12.939 it's a challenge to get guests on the show 171 00:07:13.027 --> 00:07:14.571 who are willing to risk telling their 172 00:07:14.603 --> 00:07:17.571 stories. I have a few upcoming episodes with 173 00:07:17.603 --> 00:07:19.947 people who didn't want to be on camera, so 174 00:07:19.971 --> 00:07:21.651 they used the fake name and displayed 175 00:07:21.683 --> 00:07:24.095 themselves with an avatar as a workaround. 176 00:07:24.825 --> 00:07:26.721 Recently I spoke with a young lady who has 177 00:07:26.753 --> 00:07:29.321 worked on both ships and yachts who told me 178 00:07:29.353 --> 00:07:31.497 some stories that I just couldn't believe. 179 00:07:31.681 --> 00:07:33.737 She assured me that basically anything I'd 180 00:07:33.761 --> 00:07:36.025 read or heard about P Diddy is basically 181 00:07:36.105 --> 00:07:38.977 true. I offered her an extreme level of 182 00:07:39.001 --> 00:07:40.937 anonymity so she'd be safe from any 183 00:07:40.961 --> 00:07:43.565 repercussions, but sadly she declined. 184 00:07:44.105 --> 00:07:46.433 I hope that in the coming months or years 185 00:07:46.609 --> 00:07:49.377 more people start tuning into decktales and 186 00:07:49.401 --> 00:07:51.273 get in touch to share their own stories, 187 00:07:51.409 --> 00:07:53.785 whether they're on camera or not. The most 188 00:07:53.865 --> 00:07:55.793 important thing is spreading awareness as to 189 00:07:55.809 --> 00:07:58.327 some of the horrors that take place at sea. 190 00:07:58.511 --> 00:08:01.047 This way, those looking for employment within 191 00:08:01.071 --> 00:08:03.215 the industry can better prepare and protect 192 00:08:03.255 --> 00:08:06.119 themselves. Moving forwards. Last 193 00:08:06.167 --> 00:08:08.975 year a journalist reached out to me via a 194 00:08:09.015 --> 00:08:11.407 mutual acquaintance and wanted to know what 195 00:08:11.431 --> 00:08:13.231 the second book I was trying to write 196 00:08:13.303 --> 00:08:16.207 included. After I told her, she said 197 00:08:16.231 --> 00:08:18.040 she was doing some research for a director, 198 00:08:18.040 --> 00:08:20.159 uh, who is making a documentary on a very 199 00:08:20.207 --> 00:08:22.947 similar subject. She liked what I had to 200 00:08:22.971 --> 00:08:25.387 say, put me in touch with him and we met for 201 00:08:25.411 --> 00:08:28.387 coffee in September 2024. I took 202 00:08:28.411 --> 00:08:30.635 him through the back pages of my manuscript 203 00:08:30.755 --> 00:08:33.011 which detailed the sources for the topics I 204 00:08:33.043 --> 00:08:34.947 covered, and he seemed curious to want to 205 00:08:34.971 --> 00:08:37.843 know more. Also, he was hopeful that I 206 00:08:37.859 --> 00:08:40.171 would send him a copy, but uh, he didn't wine 207 00:08:40.203 --> 00:08:42.163 and dine me properly, so I asked him to let 208 00:08:42.179 --> 00:08:45.019 me think about it. He did pique my interest 209 00:08:45.067 --> 00:08:47.147 though. When he asked me what I thought about 210 00:08:47.171 --> 00:08:49.895 the idea of potentially going undercover. 211 00:08:51.195 --> 00:08:53.099 I told him this was something I had d 212 00:08:53.147 --> 00:08:55.499 entertained as a throwaway thought before, 213 00:08:55.627 --> 00:08:58.187 but realistically, it's almost an impossible 214 00:08:58.251 --> 00:09:01.219 task. I'd be expected to wear hidden mics 215 00:09:01.267 --> 00:09:03.779 and cameras, I'd be working under contracts, 216 00:09:03.827 --> 00:09:06.331 so I'm the one taking all the risk. I'd need 217 00:09:06.363 --> 00:09:08.747 whoever was my cabin mate to be undercover as 218 00:09:08.771 --> 00:09:11.107 well, and I could essentially go a whole 219 00:09:11.211 --> 00:09:13.811 working contract without capturing anything 220 00:09:13.923 --> 00:09:16.849 worthy of a juicy expose documentary, 221 00:09:17.027 --> 00:09:19.261 so the whole thing would probably be a waste 222 00:09:19.293 --> 00:09:21.797 of time. I have not heard from that director 223 00:09:21.821 --> 00:09:23.225 since. Aw. 224 00:09:24.885 --> 00:09:26.821 I started interviewing people back in 225 00:09:26.853 --> 00:09:29.453 November 2023 and launched the 226 00:09:29.469 --> 00:09:31.944 Decktales podcast on the 1st of May 227 00:09:32.097 --> 00:09:34.837 2024. It's been a labour of love working at 228 00:09:34.901 --> 00:09:36.605 something that brings me great fulfilment, 229 00:09:36.725 --> 00:09:38.789 but it is something that I do almost full 230 00:09:38.837 --> 00:09:41.345 time without pay around my paid work. 231 00:09:41.765 --> 00:09:44.221 Whenever I tell people about the show, most 232 00:09:44.253 --> 00:09:46.373 of them ask if it's anything like the show 233 00:09:46.469 --> 00:09:48.989 below deck. This is because it's for many, 234 00:09:49.037 --> 00:09:51.501 the only point of reference they have as an 235 00:09:51.533 --> 00:09:54.125 insight into that world, but of course it's 236 00:09:54.165 --> 00:09:56.653 nothing really like below deck as a lot of 237 00:09:56.669 --> 00:09:59.501 that is dramatised for TV and Decktales 238 00:09:59.533 --> 00:10:02.205 is real life also. The big 239 00:10:02.245 --> 00:10:04.301 difference is that the show takes place on 240 00:10:04.333 --> 00:10:06.941 billionaires private luxury yachts and 241 00:10:06.973 --> 00:10:08.901 decktales gives people a peek behind the 242 00:10:08.933 --> 00:10:10.949 scenes of mass tourism within the cruise 243 00:10:11.037 --> 00:10:14.023 industry. Mostly when I was 244 00:10:14.039 --> 00:10:16.551 on ships no one really had a smartphone and 245 00:10:16.583 --> 00:10:19.035 wi fi was expensive and limited on board. 246 00:10:19.375 --> 00:10:22.055 Nowadays companies are signing up to use Elon 247 00:10:22.095 --> 00:10:24.751 Musk's Starlink satellites so it's a lot 248 00:10:24.783 --> 00:10:27.599 easier to access your phones. The last couple 249 00:10:27.647 --> 00:10:29.807 decades of tech evolution have been a 250 00:10:29.831 --> 00:10:32.607 constant game of keepy uppies, but now 251 00:10:32.711 --> 00:10:35.327 with Zoom, web conferencing, audio editing 252 00:10:35.391 --> 00:10:37.917 software, Reaper, Microsoft Clipchamp, 253 00:10:38.071 --> 00:10:40.705 social media and a tiny bit of help from AI, 254 00:10:40.825 --> 00:10:42.537 I've been able to get Decktales up and 255 00:10:42.561 --> 00:10:45.465 running pretty much on my own. I'm still 256 00:10:45.505 --> 00:10:47.870 very young into my podcasting journey and um, 257 00:10:47.870 --> 00:10:50.049 my hope is that I can continue down this path 258 00:10:50.097 --> 00:10:52.665 for many years to come. I feel as though I've 259 00:10:52.705 --> 00:10:54.593 only just scratched the surface of some of 260 00:10:54.609 --> 00:10:57.337 the untold stories out there and if you've 261 00:10:57.361 --> 00:10:59.329 been following the show you'll be aware of 262 00:10:59.377 --> 00:11:01.785 some of the more troubling experiences people 263 00:11:01.825 --> 00:11:04.723 have shared. It is with the greatest hope 264 00:11:04.849 --> 00:11:07.263 that not only can Decktales be a place where 265 00:11:07.319 --> 00:11:09.127 crew can hear these things and know they're 266 00:11:09.151 --> 00:11:11.975 not alone, but perhaps one day 267 00:11:12.135 --> 00:11:14.391 help put some pressure on companies to 268 00:11:14.463 --> 00:11:16.935 improve the rights and working conditions for 269 00:11:16.975 --> 00:11:19.591 their crew members. And I'd like to be able 270 00:11:19.623 --> 00:11:21.487 to get the show to a point where I'm able to 271 00:11:21.511 --> 00:11:23.967 attract some ocean friendly brands to sponsor 272 00:11:23.991 --> 00:11:26.527 the show and be able to offset some of the 273 00:11:26.551 --> 00:11:28.743 profits to go towards, uh, a charity that's 274 00:11:28.799 --> 00:11:31.795 directly affected by ships and that is coral 275 00:11:31.835 --> 00:11:34.427 reef restoration. It's an 276 00:11:34.491 --> 00:11:36.499 incredibly important effort to give towards 277 00:11:36.587 --> 00:11:38.739 because they are essentially the beginnings 278 00:11:38.787 --> 00:11:41.787 of all life at sea. And although Decktales is 279 00:11:41.811 --> 00:11:44.251 a platform to help crew who are powerless to 280 00:11:44.283 --> 00:11:47.123 voice their experiences, oceanic wildlife 281 00:11:47.179 --> 00:11:49.535 and marine ecosystems are too. 282 00:11:50.155 --> 00:11:52.219 I'm still actively trying to find a publisher 283 00:11:52.267 --> 00:11:54.563 for my second book, so if you know anyone 284 00:11:54.619 --> 00:11:56.895 then please do forward on their details. 285 00:11:57.435 --> 00:12:00.211 And finally dear listener, if you would but 286 00:12:00.243 --> 00:12:03.211 do me a teeny tiny favour, please do 287 00:12:03.243 --> 00:12:05.379 give the show a five star rating and review 288 00:12:05.427 --> 00:12:07.779 on either Apple, Spotify or wherever you get 289 00:12:07.787 --> 00:12:10.435 your podcasts as this helps its ranking to 290 00:12:10.475 --> 00:12:13.011 appear more visible to new listeners. Like 291 00:12:13.043 --> 00:12:15.707 the videos, share the clips on social media, 292 00:12:15.851 --> 00:12:18.427 comment, subscribe and all that good stuff. 293 00:12:18.611 --> 00:12:21.275 Thanks for listening and uh Bon voyage.