The hit Netflix show Baby Reindeer has sparked a wave of harassment complaints, with one charity reporting a 47 per cent increase in calls compared to last year.
The National Stalking Helpline revealed it has helped 832 victims, compared to 564 at this time last year, with the increase attributed to the release of the much-discussed seven-part miniseries.
Month on month, the charity also saw a 26 per cent increase in calls between March and April. Mirror reports.
Baby Reindeer is based on comedian Richard Gadd’s real-life experience of being harassed by a woman, who in the show is portrayed as ‘Martha’ and played by Jessica Gunning.
Over four and a half years, Gadd says she received 41,071 emails, 744 tweets, letters totaling 106 pages, and 350 hours of voicemails from her stalker.
The hit Netflix show Baby Reindeer has sparked a flurry of calls to the National Stalking Helpline, which reported a 47 per cent increase in the number of victims helped compared to last year.
Baby Reindeer is based on comedian Richard Gadd’s real-life experience of being harassed by a woman, portrayed in the show as ‘Martha’ and played by Jessica Gunning.
The national helpline, run by the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, set up in 1986 following the disappearance of a 25-year-old estate agent, said it welcomed the increase in calls as it indicates victims can get the support they need. .
Policy officer Tallulah Belassie-Page said: “Programmes like Baby Reindeer do a great job of raising awareness about the crime of stalking, particularly among male victims who may not have felt empowered to reach out and seek support.”
One male victim, who said, like Gadd, that he had been harassed by a woman while working in a pub, said: “After months of texts and items being left for me at work, I alerted the police thinking it would be I put an end to the nightmare, but I was very wrong.
“I’ve spent the last few years reeling from the whole thing and feeling in disbelief, but the spectacle and Gadd’s bravery to dramatize his own experience has normalized my experience and made me feel less alone, and I will be forever grateful for that.”
A statement on the helpline’s website about the program said that about 14 percent of victims seeking support identify as men, while 17 percent of perpetrators identify as women.
The chariyy said: “In light of widespread media interest in Richard Gadd’s Netflix series Baby Reindeer, we would like to congratulate all victims of bullying who have had the courage to come forward and seek support for this devastating crime.”
‘The experiences portrayed in Baby Reindeer are a shocking reminder of the extent to which stalkers pursue their victim by any means possible and how terrifying this is for anyone who is the target of such obsessive and obsessive behaviour.
“Although it is predominantly a crime that disproportionately affects women, with around 64% of harassment victims identified as women and 71% of perpetrators identified as men, there is no typical harasser or victim of harassment and Baby Reindeer highlights the fact that anyone can experience this.’
While Gadd never named her stalker, online sleuths quickly identified Fiona Harvey, 58, who says she has suffered death threats and abuse from internet trolls as a result of the series.
Fiona Harvey came out and gave her first TV interview to Piers Morgan about the show.
Baby Reindeer has sparked debate and global acclaim since its release on Netflix last month.
The latest viewing figures show it has garnered 60 million views to date.
However, the success of the series has not been without controversy.
In previous interviews, Gadd has said that the episode with her harasser, whom she never named, was “resolved” and that “the situation… with the person who harassed me is certainly over.”
Both Gadd and Netflix also insisted that the story does not reveal the stalker’s true identity.
The comedian previously claimed to have disguised his stalker’s identity to such an extent that he said: “I don’t think she recognized herself.”
But online sleuths quickly identified Fiona Harvey, 58, who says she has suffered death threats and abuse from internet trolls as a result of the series and has now hired a lawyer amid accusations she could file a defamation lawsuit.
And yesterday his side of the story was reinforced by a former waitress who worked alongside Gadd at the celebrity pub where he claims he was harassed by saying Harvey was “targeted as a joke”.
The woman, now in her early 30s, said she felt “uncomfortable” working at the Hawley Arms in Camden because of its “misogynistic culture”, fueled by “drug use, alcohol and promiscuity”.
She told MailOnline: ‘Something doesn’t sit right with me about him presenting himself as the innocent party and being bullied. It just doesn’t fit my perception of working there.
‘I worked there the same years as him and with the same staff.
‘There was an underlying joke. I feel bad for her. She was clearly vulnerable and clearly alone.
“I think she was considered a joke among the male staff members and he made her laugh.
‘She must have gotten the impression that he liked her because of this, hence the alleged harassment.
“I just don’t like the idea of someone vulnerable being taken advantage of.
‘They targeted someone who was vulnerable and thought it was funny. I really feel for her.
It’s clear that he’s not feeling very well. Why would you pursue someone who is clearly not stable?
A former colleague of Baby Reindeer star Richard Gadd has cast doubt on the actor’s claims that he was attacked by a stalker at the celebrity pub where they worked (pictured: The Hawley Arms).
Richard Gadd based his show Baby Reindeer on his experience at the Hawley Arms