A woman who believes she is the inspiration behind the stalker portrayed in Baby Reindeer has said she has not seen the show and only met its creator two or three times.
Scottish lawyer Fiona Harvey, 58, spoke to Piers Morgan about how she was portrayed as a “stalker” in the hit Netflix black comedy, which she said is defamatory and untrue.
The show stars Richard Gadd as a version of himself, Donny, with the character largely based on his own experiences of being stalked and the toll it took on his relationships and career.
Harvey alleged that Gadd was “making money out of untrue facts” and denied ever being at his home, contacting his parents or sending thousands of texts and emails.
She told Piers Morgan that she will be taking legal action against both Gadd and Netflix and she is currently exploring all her options.
When quizzed by Morgan if she had watched the show Harvey said: “Not at all. I have heard about the court scene, about the jail sentences.”
She added: “I haven’t watched any of it... I think I’d be sick. It’s taken over enough of my life. I find it quite obscene. I find it horrifying, misogynistic.
“Some of the death threats have been really terrible online, people phoning me up. It has been absolutely horrendous.”
She also alleged that Gadd had “extreme psychiatric problems” and labelled the show as a “work of fiction”.
Harvey went on to say: “There’s two true facts in that. That his name is Richard Gadd and that he works as a jobbing barman on benefits in the Hawley Arms - and that we met two or three times.”
Jessica Gunning plays Martha, who becomes obsessed with the failing comedian after he gives her a cup of tea, following him home and staking out the pub where he works.
But Harvey denied that is how the pair met and alleged that she was in a pub for a meal and a drink of lemonade before Gadd interrupted a conversation she was having with another barman.
The series, which the Standard has described as “nail-bitingly tense” and “not for the faint-hearted”, has drawn huge speculation around the real identity of the stalker dramatised in the show.
The seven-episode series started on April 18 and was viewed 56.5 million times in just 26 days. It has been acclaimed by everyone from Stephen King to Cardi B.
Morgan has been widely criticised on social media for pressing ahead with the interview, which has been dubbed as “completely irresponsible broadcasting” and “trauma porn”.
Viewers of the series have raised concerns about Harvey’s mental health and whether there has been any duty of care towards her.
Gadd received over 40,000 emails, 740 tweets, 350 hours of voicemail, 100 pages of letters and 45 Facebook messages in the five years after he first met the alleged stalker.
When asked if she had sent any messages to Gadd in her interview Harvey said she “had not sent him anything”. She added that “there may have been a couple of emails” and denied that she had sent him any texts or Facebook messages.
During the exclusive interview, Harvey was also shown a clip from the show of Martha being jailed for stalking. When asked if she had ever been to prison she said: “No, nowhere near it.”
Gadd first turned his experiences into a one-man show Baby Reindeer, a reference to the nickname his alleged stalker gave him.
Harvey conceded it was true that she had a toy reindeer which also inspired the Netflix show’s title.
Gadd’s one-man show won an award at the Edinburgh Fringe and played in London’s Bush Theatre in 2019, also winning an Olivier award.
It was due to transfer to the West End but never opened due to the coronavirus pandemic.
