A woman who claims to be the real-life ‘stalker’ portrayed in Netflix hit Baby Reindeer says the story written by a Fife actor is “not true”.
Comedian Richard Gadd has become a household name since the drama he wrote and stars in was released earlier this month.
The series claims to show his true-to-life experiences of being stalked by a woman – named Martha in the show – in London as well as being sexually assaulted.
Since its release, Baby Reindeer fans have speculated on Martha’s real identity and set about tracking her down online.
Although viewers are told at the start of every Baby Reindeer episode that it is a true story, Gadd has admitted that certain parts have been changed to protect people’s identities – as well as to make it “visually interesting”.
‘Martha’ claims she is the victim after Baby Reindeer release
In an interview with the Daily Record, the woman who claims to be the real-life Martha has hit out at Gadd, from Wormit, and claims parts of the show are false.
The woman, who has not been named, said: “I’m the victim here, not Richard Gadd.
“I’ve had death threats as a result of his show despite the fact that a lot of the things he claimed are just not true.
“Someone online said, ‘If I find you I will kill you’. A guy in North Carolina said that he and other people were going to stalk me, like I am supposed to have stalked Gadd.
“I got two hours’ sleep last night. I thought, what if his supporters really do things like that?”
The woman, who is originally from Scotland but lives in London, continued: “I have not watched Baby Reindeer but I have seen various things.
“I was in Richard Gadd’s company on occasions but I didn’t stalk him like he claims.
“This is a gross intrusion into my privacy. I haven’t seen him for 12 years.
“I read that he had written that show for the festival four or five years ago and I thought, ‘Oh my God’.
‘I just want to get on with my life’
“This weekend I Googled and stories about Richard Gadd and Baby Reindeer were all over the place in flashing lights.
“I had been aware four or five years ago about him calling the character Martha and I saw the photo of the actress.
“I don’t think I look like that woman actress playing Martha.”
The woman added that she “just wants to get on with my life”.
Gadd told Variety magazine last week: “(The show is) all emotionally 100% true, if that makes sense.
“It’s all borrowed from instances that happened to me and real people that I met.
“But of course, you can’t do the exact truth, for both legal and artistic reasons.”
He added: “Also for artistic reasons, a lot of stalking is quite boring at times, like it’s a repetitive action and it’s, ‘Oh god, this person’s messaging again.’
‘As well as a true story, you have to make it visually interesting’
“And of course, in television, especially a thriller, you need to move certain timelines around, you need to move certain points to the end of episodes to make them pay off a little better.
“As well as a true story, you have to make it visually interesting.
“Just in percentages, I wouldn’t be able to (tell you), but it’s a very true story – it comes from an emotional truth, and I think that’s what people are resonating with most of all.”
Gadd and Netflix have been contacted for comment by The Courier.
Earlier this week, Gadd urged fans to avoid speculating about the real-life identities of the characters in his show.
Read more about Richard Gadd, the Fife comedian.
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