Woman named as Baby Reindeer stalker says she is suing Netflix

1 week ago 10

By Ewan Somerville

May 10, 2024 — 8.14am

The pistillate named arsenic a real-life stalker who inspired the bid Baby Reindeer has said she volition writer Netflix, and has accused the show’s writer of being “obsessed” with her.

Fiona Harvey, 58, has breached her soundlessness aft fans of the deed play claimed to person identified her arsenic the idiosyncratic who inspired the quality of Martha conscionable hours aft its merchandise past month.

Martha (Jessica Gunning) enters Donny’s beingness and refuses to leave.

In an interrogation with Piers Morgan Uncensored connected TalkTV, she claimed nary 1 from Netflix had contacted her, and said she had been depicted successful a “defamatory” way.

Written by and starring Richard Gadd, a 34-year-old comedian, the play charts the “suffocating obsession” of Martha towards him “which threatens to wreck some their lives”, arsenic good arsenic his acquisition of being raped by a man.

In her archetypal clip connected camera, Ms Harvey claimed the bid was “completely untrue” and “a enactment of fiction”, contempt each of the 7 episodes carrying the claim: “This is simply a existent story.”

Asked if she would beryllium taking ineligible action, she said she “absolutely” would “against some him and Netflix”, adding that she had instructed lawyers “in part”.

Netflix and Gadd person been contacted for comment. Gadd precocious asked fans connected Instagram: “Please don’t speculate connected who immoderate of the real-life radical could be. That’s not the constituent of the show.”

During the interview, Ms Harvey denied ever being astatine Gadd’s home, contacting his parents oregon sending thousands of texts and emails. But she admitted owning 4 mobile phones and 4 to six antithetic email addresses, arsenic good arsenic having a artifact reindeer erstwhile she was younger, arsenic depicted successful the series.

She told Morgan she was successful a five-year narration with a lawyer and had ne'er been charged with a transgression offence. In Baby Reindeer, Martha is fixed a situation condemnation for stalking.

Asked if it was existent Gadd had offered her a escaped cupful of beverage aft she archetypal walked into the pub wherever helium was working, Ms Harvey said she was really having a repast with lemonade arsenic she is diabetic, and had met him lone “five oregon six times” successful her life.

Asked if she spoke with him aft archetypal gathering him, she told Talk TV: “He interrupted a conversation… helium said, ‘Oh, you’re Scottish’, and fundamentally commandeered the conversation.

“You know, I was talking to somebody. It’s beauteous rich. Interrupt. So helium seemed to beryllium obsessed with maine from that infinitesimal onwards.”

Pressed connected the 41,000 emails, 350 hours of dependable messages, 744 tweets, 48 Facebook messages, and 106 letters she is alleged to person sent Gadd, Ms Harvey said: “That’s simply not true.”

She accepted sending him “a handful” of emails, which she numbered arsenic “less than ten”, and sent “about 18 tweets” to him “years and years ago” arsenic good arsenic a letter. She said she besides went to 1 of his drama shows.

She was questioned astir the anticipation of Gadd having dependable messages from her successful existent life, but claimed these “would beryllium [from] taping maine successful the Hawley Arms”.

“I mean, my constituent is, though, adjacent if that were true, I didn’t lunge astatine him crossed the bar. I didn’t sexual[ly] battle him successful a canal. I didn’t spell to jail,” she said.

“On the internet, sleuths tracked maine down and hounded maine and gave maine decease threats. So it wasn’t truly a choice. I was forced into this situation,” she said.

Ms Harvey told Morgan she had a “standard Scottish” upbringing, and had not told her parent astir the drama.

Speaking successful Parliament this week, Netflix argumentation main Benjamin King said that the streamer and Clerkenwell Films, which made the show, took “every tenable precaution successful disguising the real-life identities of the radical progressive successful that story”.

He added: “I personally wouldn’t beryllium comfy with a satellite successful which we decided it was amended that Richard was silenced and not allowed to archer the story.”

The Telegraph, London