Jill Whelan Says a Love Boat Sequel Would Be 'Fabulous,' Jokes Vicki Might Be Remarried 'Like Me' (Exclusive)

• The boat of love stars Fred Grandy, Bernie Kopell, Ted Lange and Jill Whelan set sail on Princess Cruises’ The The ship of love A celebration at sea that left Brooklyn, NY on August 31 and traveled through New England and Canada for seven nights
• Whelan began playing Vicki Stubing The boat of love at the age of 11 and told PEOPLE on Enchanted Princess that the “amazing cast of human beings” helped guide her through the industry
• The child star also recalled working with producer Douglas Cramer, who she said “really didn’t like women and was terrible.”

On the last day of August, approximately 3,600 passengers boarded the Enchanted Princess in Brooklyn, NY, for Princess Cruises’ The boat of love Celebration at sea. During the entire seven-night voyage, the guests listened The boat of love stars Fred Grandy, Ted Lange, Bernie Kopell and Jill Whelan talk about the hit series from the 70s and 80s during a Q&A, test their knowledge on The boat of love trivia, sipped specialty The ship of love cocktails and hanging out with the actors when they bumped into them on the boat.

Princess Cruises already has its 2025 The ship of love Celebration at Sea sailing is scheduled to depart Galveston, Texas aboard the Regal Princess beginning November 16, 2025, so the cast knows fans want more The ship of love.

“Wouldn’t a sequel be fantastic?” Whelan, 57, asked PEOPLE aboard the Enchanted Princess.

The boat of love‘s Fred Grandy reveals how Billy Crystal auditioned for the role of Gopher but ‘really hated the script’

Whelan said she would like to see her character Vicki, who she started playing at age 11, in a fulfilling relationship. “She always had horrible boyfriends who made her steal or drink,” the former child star recalled. “It would be fun to explore where she would go for work or in a relationship. Maybe it is [married] for the third time, like me.”

Until the actors come together on the screen, The ship of love devotees can catch Whelan, Grandy, 76, and Lange, also 76, together in an off-Broadway play Lange wrote next summer in New York.

“We get along really well,” Whelan said of her co-stars. “Professionally, they taught me how to behave in this industry. We were so lucky with Gavin [MacLeod] and Bernie set the bar at the beginning. They set the tone and a level of respect that some actors unfortunately don’t have because they weren’t necessarily taught that. It’s great to be in a business where you can entertain people, and that’s probably what I’ve learned from them more than anything else, which is not to take myself too seriously.”

The Love Boat stars (from left) Ted Lange, Fred Grandy, Bernie Kopell, Gavin MacLeod, Lauren Tewes and Jill Whelan in 1979.

ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty

Whelan credits “an incredible array of human beings”. The boat of loveas did her mother, Carol Garrett, with the help of her navigating Hollywood at a young age. “She’s the reason I haven’t been arrested yet,” Whelan joked. “I am still afraid of her because she is a powerful woman! But look, putting a child in a job always leaves room for disaster or wicked things to happen. My mom did her best.”

Meanwhile, Grandy and Lange helped shape Whelan into “who I am as a person, because those were my most formative years,” she said. “They were so generous with their love for me and their professionalism and knowledge of our craft.”

The PEOPLE Puzzler has arrived! How fast can you solve it? Play now!

The actress spoke at Still Here Hollywood podcast earlier this year about how producer Doug Cramer took drastic measures to encourage her to stay thin, including working with “some crazy doctor who made me eat 400 calories a day.” She described Cramer, who died in 2021 at age 89, to PEOPLE as someone who “really didn’t like women and was horrible.”

“But everyone has to bear that cross,” Whelan continued. “Or as my mom always said, ‘Everybody has a hole in their sock. And if we all knew we had a hole in each other’s socks, we’d be in a much better place.’ So it’s just one of those things. It could have been a lot worse. I heard a great saying that you grow up to be the person that would protect you, so I try to do that with my inner lane, not the negative things I remember as a child.”

If Whelan could go back and give her younger self any advice, it would be to “shut down the noise,” she said, adding, “I would tell myself that just because someone openly criticizes you, it’s really a reflection of who they are, and not a reflection of anything that has anything to do with you.”

‘The Love Boat’ stars (from left) Bernie Kopell, Jill Whelan, Ted Lange and Fred Grandy in The Enchanted Princess.

Princess cruises

Ted Lange once confronted Aaron Spelling about the prominence of White Cast on The ship of love: ‘Why can’t I greet people?’

Now, as a celebration ambassador for Princess Cruises, Whelan has been able to repay her mother who led by taking her family on cruises around the world. Whelan even got to spend time with her stepfather before he died on a Princess cruise over New Years 2024.

“We had a lot of fun, we sat in the afternoon and played cards all day,” she said. “In the afternoon, the Crown Grill is not open for lunch, so we always go there and play cards. Another tradition we always have is, when we leave port, we go to the last fantail and sit on the balcony at the Wake View bar with a plate of fries saying goodbye to the port we just left. These are mainly our traditions – and sitting in the Sanctuary.”

During The boat of love Celebration at Sea Whelan participated in the Enchanted Princess sailing celebration on 31 August, the captain’s champagne toast at the waterfall, the vow renewal ceremony on board and the farewell show on 7 September. Guests also enjoyed entertainment such as magic and comedy from Quinn “The Mighty Quinn” Beasley and Eric Buss, DJ sets by DJ Robert Micheal, live music by Arny Galoy, Jowit, The Pipers Chair and Pinnacle and musical staging Rock opera.

Never miss a story — subscribe to PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

The boat of love streaming on Paramount+.

Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education