The comedian behind the chilling new Netflix series Baby Reindeer, which is based on his own experiences of being bullied, says he still finds it difficult to trust people and has been on “every therapy”.
Richard Gadd, whose seven-part Netflix series is based on his stand-up show of the same name about harassment, was attacked by the woman for six years, until the police finally intervened.
The actor and comedian was subjected to a campaign of obsession by the woman, known as Martha, which manifested itself in 41,071 emails, 744 tweets, 106 pages of letters and a staggering 350 hours of voice messages.
The 34-year-old from Fife, Scotland, won a Fringe award in 2019 for Baby Reindeer, the nickname given to him by his stalker, known as ‘Martha’, and says playing a version of what happened to him has allowed him to have ” ownership” of trauma.
A scene from Baby Reindeer, released on Netflix this week; The psychological thriller follows comedian Donny Dunn, played by the show’s writer Richard Gadd, and his delicate relationship with a crazed fan named Martha (Jessica Gunning).
In real life, Gadd, left, 34, was stalked for six years by a female stalker who drove a “freight train” throughout his life, he says. Right: His award-winning stand-up show, based on some of his own experiences of harassment, is now a Netflix series.
The psychological thriller released this week follows comedian Donny Dunn, played by Gadd, and his delicate relationship with his crazed fan Martha (Jessica Gunning).
It documents the lengths to which a crazed fan will go to get closer to her obsession, including how she shows up at his concerts and his workplace and bombards him with messages.
This week, Gadd said The times that his own years of bullying have left him with something “like post-traumatic stress disorder.” For the Netflix role, she lost weight to match her 25-pound “neurotic” self at the height of her own bullying nightmare.
Gadd says he is currently single and “more cautious” around people because of the campaign of terror Martha inflicted, saying, “It takes me a long time to trust them.” Before I would enter situations with so much abandon and it would burn me out.’
She says it took “years” before police finally took her complaints seriously, something that prolonged the agony of everyone involved, including her relatives.
Police told her at the time that unless her harasser became physically violent, there was little they could do to resolve the problem.
Gadd plays the comedian who is harassed; In real life, his own stalker sent him 41,071 emails, 744 tweets, 106 pages of letters and a staggering 350 hours of voicemails over a six-year period.
Martha in Baby Reindeer follows his obsession with his concerts and his workplace and sends him thousands of messages; She says that performing a version of her own bullying experiences has proven cathartic.
In the seven-part series, Martha heavily uses technology to stalk and restrain her victim.
Gadd first met his stalker after offering “a crying stranger a cup of tea” when she walked into the bar where he worked.
The simple gesture sparked an episode of harassment in which he was regularly followed at home and at work, and tracked on Facebook using three fake accounts.
He told The Times: ‘At first everyone in the pub thought it was funny that he had an admirer. Then he started invading my life, following me, showing up at my concerts, waiting outside my house, sending me thousands of voicemails and emails.’
The actor and comedian, pictured in 2019, says police refused to accept his claims that he was being harassed despite ‘Martha’ frequently turning up at his home.
Talking with him Telegraph In 2019, of the one-woman show she wrote after the trauma, currently playing at London’s Bush Theatre, she said: “It was debilitating beyond belief.”
‘I listened to his voicemails and felt my eyes fill with tears. They were tears of frustration. Proper stress for the brain.
Gadd says the woman drove a “freight train” thanks to her ability to have a normal life and relationships, but that the show portrays her as not evil but severely affected by mental health issues.
In the Netflix series, Martha receives a prison sentence for her crimes, but Gadd has not divulged the fate of her own stalker, except to say that the problem was resolved and that she never wanted to “throw someone who was at that level in prison.” of mental discomfort”. .’
Baby Reindeer is now available on Netflix