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Another day, another Bachelor Nation show. If you followed her journey on Gerry’s season of The Golden Bachelor, we have the details for how to watch The Golden Bachelorette live for free online to see whether Joan finds love for a second time.
The Golden Bachelorette is a spin-off of The Golden Bachelor, which featured The Bachelor‘s franchises first Bachelor and contestants over the age of 60. “Some of the casting interviews we got, they were just so touching,” ABC unscripted executive Rob Mill told Variety in 2020 about why the network wanted to create The Golden Bachelor franchise. “It’s such a different way of doing The Bachelor because these people are just at a totally different place in their lives. There is an interesting thing about people who have hit the other end of the spectrum, who’ve lived their lives, they’ve raised their kids, some have been widowed or divorced and maybe some have never been in love. We thought that would be an interesting dynamic through the Bachelor prism.”
The first Golden Bachelorette season premiered in 2024 and was led by Joan Vassos, a contestant from the first season of The Golden Bachelor with Gerry Turner, who self-eliminated herself in 12th place. “It represents millions of people that are in their 50s and 60s and 70s and 80s, that are in this second half of their life that deserve to find love,” Joan told WMAR 2News Baltimore in September 2024 of why she wanted to be the Golden Bachelorette. “As you get older, you’re expected to take a back seat, that you’re supposed to now be in a support mode. She continued, “Being on The Golden Bachelor actually cured me of that feeling. I went to that house and I met these 21 other amazing women, and when I talked to them, I thought, well of course you deserve a second chance at life and you deserve love. And why would I think that was true for them and not for myself.”
When does The Golden Bachelorette air?
The Golden Bachelorette airs on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT ABC.
How to watch The Golden Bachelorette live for free
The Golden Bachelorette airs on ABC, which is available to stream on services like DirecTV Stream, Fubo, and Hulu+ With Live TV. DirecTV Stream offers a five-day free trial, and starts at $79.99 per month after the trial ends. Fubo offers a seven-day free trial, and starts at $79.99 per month after the trial ends. While Hulu+ With Live TV doesn’t have a free trial, it is cheaper per month than the other options, starting at $68.99 per month, and offers plans that include free subscriptions to Disney Plus and ESPN Plus.
Best Overall Pick to Watch The Golden Bachelorette: DirecTV Stream’s Free Trial
Direct TV is our best overall pick to watch The Golden Bachelorette for free for its free trial, price, and channel selection. DirecTV Stream offers a five-day free trial. DirecTV offers four plans: Entertainment, which costs $79.99 per month; Choice, which costs $108.99 per month with the first two months at $83.99 per month; Ultimate, which costs $84.99 per month with the first two months at $94.99 per month; and Premiere, which costs $159.99 per month.
As for other differences between the plans, Entertainment includes more than 75 channels, the ability to stream on unlimited devices in your home, unlimited cloud DVR storage, and a special offer on premium channels. Choice, which is the most popular plan, includes more than 105 channels, regional sports networks, and everything included in Entertainment. Ultimate includes more than 140 channels and everything included in Entertainment and Choice. Premiere includes more than 150 channels including premium channels like HBO and Starz and everything included in Entertainment, Choice, and Premiere. Read on for step-by-step instructions on how to watch The Golden Bachelorette with DirecTV Stream’s free trial.
- Visit streamtv.directv.com‘s packages page
- Click “Try It Free” for the plan of your choice
- Enter your information and payment method
- Search for ABC and start watching The Golden Bachelorette
Best Free Trial Pick to Watch The Golden Bachelorette: Fubo’s Free Trial
Fubo is our best free trial pick to watch The Golden Bachelorette live for free. Fubo offers a seven-day free trial (two days longer than DirecTV Stream) and offers offers two plans: Pro, which costs $79.99 per month; and Elite, which costs $89.99 per month.
As for the difference between the plans, Pro includes 180 channels, 1,000 hours of Cloud DVR, and the ability to watch on up to 10 screens at once. Elite includes everything in Pro, as well as a total of 256 channels and 4K resolution. Read on for step-by-step instructions on how to watch The Golden Bachelorette with Fubo’s free trial.
- Visit Fubo.TV
- Click “Start Free Trial”
- Enter your information and payment method
- Search for ABC and start watching The Golden Bachelorette
Best Upgrade Pick to Watch The Golden Bachelorette: Hulu+ Live TV
Hulu+ With Live TV is our best upgrade pick to watch The Golden Bachelorette based on its channel selection and its free subscriptions to Hulu, Disney Plus, and ESPN Plus. Hulu+ With Live TV offers four plans: a $68.99 per month plan with access to only live TV; a $69.99 per month plan with free subscriptions to Hulu with ads, Disney Plus with ads, and ESPN Plus with ads; a $74.99 per month plan with free subscriptions to Hulu with ads, Disney Plus with no ads, and ESPN Plus with ads; and a $82.99 per month plan with free subscriptions to Hulu with no ads, Disney Plus with no ads, and ESPN Plus with ads. Read on for step-by-step instructions on how to watch The Golden Bachelorette with Hulu+ Live TV.
- Visit Hulu.com/liveTV
- Click “Sign Up Now”
- Enter your information and payment method
- Search for ABC and start watching The Golden Bachelorette
Who’s the Golden Bachelorette?
Joan Vassos is the lead of The Golden Bachelorette Season 1. Joan, a 61-year-old Private School Administrator from Rockville, Maryland, was previously a contestant on The Golden Bachelor Season 1 with Gerry Turner. She self-eliminated in 12th place in Week 3 to return home to take care of her daughter, who had a medical emergency. Joan is a mother of four and grandmother of two who was widowed after 32 years of marriage when her late husband, John Vassos, died in 2021 from pancreatic cancer. He was 59 years old.
“I did not want to spend my life alone, so I knew that I had to take action, but my heart wasn’t there at all,” Joan told CNN in May 2024 of why she applied to be on The Golden Bachelor. “I was saying to my friend, ‘How in the world do you date now? Look around this restaurant. Everybody here is a couple. Everybody my age is married. All my friends are married.’” Once she got home, Joan saw a casting call for The Golden Bachelor on TV. “I was like, ‘The universe is talking to me,’” Joan said.
Who’s in The Golden Bachelorette cast?
Notable contestants in The Golden Bachelorette cast include Gary Levingston, the godson of singer Tina Turner; Guy Gansert, the ex-husband of Nevada Senate member Heidi Gansert; and Mark Anderson, the father of The Bachelor Season 28 winner, Kelsey Anderson, who is engaged to former Bachelor Joey Graziadei. See Joan’s full Golden Bachelorette cast below.
- Bill Hernandez, 68; Portland, Oregon
- Bob Kilroy, 66; Marina del Rey, California
- Charles “Chock” Chapple, 60; Wichita, Kansas
- Charles King, 62; Rancho Palos Verdes, California
- Charles Ling, 66; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Christopher Stallworth, 64; West Babylon, New York
- Dan Roemer, 64; Naples, Florida
- David Huff, 68; Austin, Texas
- Gary Levingston, 65; Palm Desert, California
- Gil Ramirez, 60; Mission Viejo, California
- Gregg Lassen, 64; Longboat Key, Florida
- Guy Gansert, 66; Reno, Nevada
- Jack Lencioni, 68, Schereville, Indiana
- Jonathan Rone, 61; Oakland, Iowa
- Jordan Heller, 61; Riverwoods, Illinois
- Keith Gordon, 62; Columbus, Indiana
- Ken O’Brien, 60; Peabody, Massachusetts
- Kim Buike, 69; Seattle, Washington
- Mark Anderson, 57; Leesville, Louisiana
- Michael Stevens, 65; Denver, North Carolina
- Pablo Gonzalez-Juana, 63; Cambridge, Maryland
- Pascal Ibgui, 69; Glencoe, Illinois
- Ralph “RJ” Johnson, 66; Irvine, California
- Thomas, 62; New York City, New York
Who’s The Golden Bachelorette host?
The Golden Bachelorette is hosted by Jesse Palmer, who was the Season 5 Bachelor in 2004 and was the youngest Bachelor in Bachelor Nation history at 24 years old. Jesse hosted his first Bachelor franchise show in 2022 with The Bachelor Season 26 with Clayton Echard. During The Bachelor Season 5 finale, Jesse gave his Final Rose to Jessica Bowlin, but didn’t propose to her. Jesse and Jessica continued to date, but ended their relationship a few weeks after the finale of their Bachelor Season aired. In June 2020, Jesse and his girlfriend, Emely Fardo, married in an intimate wedding in New York City. Jesse told Us Weekly in November 2021 that he and Emely planned to marry in Provence, France, before the current health crisis cancelled their wedding date. “We had originally planned a wedding in Provence, France, for summer 2020, which was postponed until summer of 2021 due to the pandemic, but we didn’t want to wait any longer,” he said at the time. “So, we had a small, private and intimate ceremony with close friends who lived in New York City.”
Jesse graduated from the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played football for the Florida Gators, in 2001 with a bachelor’s of arts degree in political science and a bachelor’s of science degree in marketing. After graduation, Jesse was drafted by the National Football League to play for the New York Giants. He played with the team for four seasons from 2001 to 2005 as a quarterback. After the New York Giants, Jesse was drafted by the Canadian Football League to play for the Montreal Alouettes. He played with the team until 2005 when he was signed by the San Francisco 49ers. He then resigned with the Montreal Alouettes in 2006 before he retired from football in 2007 to pursue a broadcasting career. Since his broadcasting career started, Jesse has worked with networks like Fox, NFL Network, ESPN, ABC and SEC Network. He’s also guest starred on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and made guest appearances on shows like Recipe to Riches and Good Morning America, and hosted the Food Network’s Spring Baking Championship and Holiday Baking Championship.
Jesse was announced as The Bachelor Season 26 host in September 2021. “For more than 20 years, The Bachelor has brought the world dozens of unforgettable love stories, including at one time, my own,” he said at the time. “Falling in love is one of life’s greatest gifts, and I am humbled by the opportunity to return to the show as host this Season to offer the newest Bachelor advice gained from firsthand experience and I am grateful to play a small part in his journey.” The announcement came after Chris Harrison, the former host of Bachelor Nation, confirmed in June 2021 that he had retired as the franchise’s host after 19 years. “I’ve had a truly incredible run as host of The Bachelor franchise and now I’m excited to start a new chapter,” he wrote in an Instagram post at the time. “I’m so grateful to Bachelor Nation for all of the memories we’ve made together. While my two-decade journey is wrapping up, the friendships I’ve made will last a lifetime.”
Deadline reported at the time that Chris received a mid-range, eight-figure settlement as part of exit plan with ABC, the network that airs the Bachelor franchise, and Warner Bros. Television, the company that produces the Bachelor shows. The magazine also reported that Harrison’s settlement included a nondisclosure agreement. Chris’ decision to retire as Bachelor Nation’s host came after he was slammed for his response to Season 25 Bachelor contestant Rachael Kirkconnell’s racism scandal in February 2021. Rachael, the winner of Matt James’ season, faced backlash at the time when photos resurfaced of her at an Old South Antebellum-themed party at Georgia College in 2018. Before the pictures went viral, Rachael was already under controversy after her former high school classmate accused her on TikTok of bullying her and other students for dating Black men. Other TikTok users then exposed Rachael for liking social media photos of her friends in culturally insensitive costumes and with Confederate flags.
Chris came under controversy after he was interviewed about the scandal by Season 13 Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay on Extra. During the interview, Chris asked fans to give Rachael “grace” and explained that he didn’t find the Antebellum party photos offensive because they just looked like pictures a college student takes at a party. Harrison also questioned whether the photos would be considered racially insensitive in 2018 when they were taken. After the interview, many fans slammed Harrison and accused him of excusing Rachael’s behavior.
ABC confirmed in March 2021 that Chris wouldn’t host Season 17 of The Bachelorette and would be replaced by Tayshia and Kaitlyn. “Chris Harrison will not be hosting the next season of The Bachelorette,” ABC said in a statement at the time. “We support Chris in the work that he is committed to doing. In his absence, former Bachelorettes Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe will support the new Bachelorette through next season. As we continue the dialogue around achieving greater equity and inclusion within The Bachelor franchise, we are dedicated to improving the BIPOC representation of our crew, including among the executive producer ranks. These are important steps in effecting fundamental change so that our franchise is a celebration of love that is reflective of our world.” He officially retired as the Bachelor Nation’s host in June 2021.
The Golden Bachelorette airs on ABC on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT and is available to stream on Hulu.
