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NY Post

Real-life Martha from hit Netflix show ‘Baby Reindeer’ sues streaming giant for eye-popping sum

Lauren Sarner
4 min read
Fiona Harvey.
The real life "Martha" from "Baby Reindeer" has sued Netflix.
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The reindeer games continue.

Fiona Harvey, 58, the woman who is the alleged “real Martha” from the Hit Netflix show “Baby Reindeer,”  has sued the streaming giant, seeking monetary damages of at least $170 million.

The suit was filed Thursday in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

“The lies that Defendants told about Harvey to over 50 million people worldwide include that Harvey is a twice-convicted stalker who was sentenced to five years in prison, and that Harvey sexually assaulted Gadd,” her complaint reads, adding, “Defendants told these lies, and never stopped, because it was a better story than the truth, and better stories made money.”

Fiona Harvey has sued Netflix. Fiona Harvey / Facebook
Fiona Harvey has sued Netflix. Fiona Harvey / Facebook
The real-life “Martha” from “Baby Reindeer” is suing the streaming giant. REUTERS
The real-life “Martha” from “Baby Reindeer” is suing the streaming giant. REUTERS

Series creator and star Richard Gadd isn’t named in the suit.

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Harvey is alleging defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence and violations of her right of publicity.

Based on events from creator-star Richard Gadd’s life, “Baby Reindeer” (now streaming, with nearly 60 million viewers tuning in for its first month) is a thriller following Donny (Gadd), a struggling comedian who meets Martha (Jessica Gunning) while he’s working as a bartender. When he shows her a moment of kindness, that backfires. Soon, Martha turns into an obsessed stalker — doing acts such as sending him over 41,000 emails.

Gadd initially said that although the show is based on his life, he didn’t want viewers trying to sleuth out who the real Martha was.

“That’s not the point of our show,” he told the Hollywood Reporter.

Richard Gadd as Donny and Jessica Gunning as Martha in “Baby Reindeer.” Ed Miller/Netflix
Richard Gadd as Donny and Jessica Gunning as Martha in “Baby Reindeer.” Ed Miller/Netflix
Fiona Harvey said she’s the real Martha. Fiona Harvey / Facebook
Fiona Harvey said she’s the real Martha. Fiona Harvey / Facebook

Nevertheless, keyboard detectives pointed fingers at 58-year-old Harvey, née Muir. On May 9, she gave her first TV interview to Morgan on “Uncensored,” where she denied stalking Gadd.

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When asked what message she had for Gadd, she said, “Leave me alone, please. Get a life, get a proper job. I am horrified at what you’ve done.”

Harvey also revealed she has not watched the show, but found it “quite obscene.”

“I find it horrifying, misogynistic. Some of the death threats have been really terrible online. People phoning me up,” she went on. “You know, it’s been absolutely horrendous. I wouldn’t give credence to something like that, and it’s not really my kind of drama.”

Jessica Gunning as Martha in “Baby Reindeer.” Netflix
Jessica Gunning as Martha in “Baby Reindeer.” Netflix
Richard Gadd created the show based on his life. Netflix
Richard Gadd created the show based on his life. Netflix

In June, a second person came forward and alleged that Harvey had stalked her.

British lawyer Laura Wray, 62 – widow of ex-Labour MP Jimmy Wray – gave an interview to Piers Morgan on his show “Uncensored,” following Fiona Harvey’s interview in May.

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“I do feel threatened,” she said. “I always felt threatened by her because I just never knew what she was capable of.”

The Scottish legal advocate explained: “I seem to have been her major obsession over all these years,” adding this had been “for many years, for longer than Richard Gadd.”

Fiona Harvey is suing Netflix for “defamation,” among other things. REUTERS
Fiona Harvey is suing Netflix for “defamation,” among other things. REUTERS
Jessica Gunning as Martha in “Baby Reindeer.” The alleged “real Martha” is now suing the streamer. Ed Miller/Netflix
Jessica Gunning as Martha in “Baby Reindeer.” The alleged “real Martha” is now suing the streamer. Ed Miller/Netflix

In an interview with the Daily Record newspaper, Gadd said he thought “Baby Reindeer” would just be “a little cult artistic gem” rather than a huge hit, and he thinks that explains why Netflix didn’t do more to obscure identities.

“It was, like, crazy. I never expected it to sort of blow up like this,” Gadd said. “I believed it would be successful, but I didn’t expect overnight — I don’t even like to use this word — fame.”

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During an appearance in British Parliament Wednesday, Netflix’s UK public policy director Benjamin King said, “I cannot get into the specifics of what happened around the making of the show because it wouldn’t be appropriate for me to comment.”

The lawsuit also alleges, “As a result of Defendants’ lies, malfeasance and utterly reckless misconduct, Harvey’s life had been ruined. Simply, Netflix and Gadd destroyed her reputation, her character and her life.”

When the Post reached out to Netflix for comment, a spokesperson replied with the statement, “We intend to defend this matter vigorously and to stand by Richard Gadd’s right to tell his story.”

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