Baby Reindeer creator reveals theory behind his real-life stalker

Baby Reindeer has taken Netflix by storm, not least because it’s based on a true story. As new details continue to surface, creator and lead star Richard Gadd has revealed a theory about his real-life stalker. 

Stand-up comedy, stalking, and a whole lot of inner struggle — three things you can expect from Baby Reindeer.

The new seven-part series centers on Donny Dunn (Gadd), a comic/barman who is forced to confront his past trauma when serial stalker Martha (Jessica Gunning) sets her sights on him.

Netflix’s iteration is an adaptation of Gadd’s play of the same name, but what’s most surprising is both are inspired by the creator’s life — even the emails Martha (Jessica Gunning) sent to him are real. 

In Episode 1, the warped relationship between Donny and Martha is established when she walks into the pub he’s working at crying. Martha’s fixation begins when he gives her a cup of tea on the house after taking pity on her. 

Appearing on today’s (March 17) episode of This Morning, Gadd explained that while he’s not sure why his stalker came into the pub crying on that fateful day, he reckons it might have been something to do with her previous target. 

“I questioned it all of the time,” he said. “I wondered if it was the end of her stalking relationship with someone else and the start of it with me.” Perhaps she was upset after being made to cut ties with her former victim, making her more prone to finding a new one.

Gadd also said the moment he gave her that drink, he knew something was up. “It did all start with a drink on the house and I knew almost immediately,” he said. “I almost knew the second I’d done that, the second I’d made that gesture, ‘Oh something is brewing here’.”

“It got pretty relentless,” he added. “At one stage it was like an assault on all senses, across all media, emails, phone, everything. It felt like a barrage, a constant 24/7 issue.”

In real life, the stalking issue was resolved, and turning his experiences into art has been cathartic. “When you are struggling with things and everything is on your shoulders or just tight in your chest, just getting it out there, writing it down, putting it into something,” said Gadd. “It’s been the best therapy for me, it’s kind of been a lifesaver.”

Baby Reindeer is streaming on Netflix now. You can read the ending explained here, and check out other new TV shows to add to your watchlist this month.