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Baby Reindeer

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Baby Reindeer
Promotional poster
Genre
Created byRichard Gadd
Based onBaby Reindeer
by Richard Gadd
Written byRichard Gadd
Directed by
Starring
Music by
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodes7
Production
Executive producers
  • Richard Gadd
  • Wim De Greef
  • Petra Fried
  • Matt Jarvis
  • Ed Macdonald
ProducerMatthew Mulot
Production locations
Running time27–45 minutes
Production companyClerkenwell Films
Original release
NetworkNetflix
Release11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)

Baby Reindeer is a British black comedy-drama thriller television miniseries created by and starring Richard Gadd, adapted from his autobiographical one-man show.[1][2] Directed by Weronika Tofilska and Josephine Bornebusch, it also stars Jessica Gunning, Nava Mau and Tom Goodman-Hill. The miniseries was released on April 11, 2024 on Netflix, where it had a strong viewership and received critical acclaim.

Baby Reindeer was nominated for 11 Primetime Emmy Awards, winning six, including: Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series, Outstanding Writing for Gadd, Outstanding Lead Actor for Gadd, and Outstanding Supporting Actress for Gunning.

Plot

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Aspiring comedian Donny Dunn works as a bartender in a London pub. He offers a cup of tea to a customer, Martha, to cheer her up. Martha develops an attachment to Donny and begins to stalk him both in person and online. Years earlier, Donny is being mentored by TV writer Darrien O'Connor, who supplies him with drugs. The latter repeatedly sexually assaults and rapes Donny during drug-induced blackouts, until they break off contact. In the present, Donny reports Martha to the police for stalking, violence and threatening his parents. She is arrested and spends nine months in prison. Darrien and Donny meet again. Darrien suggests a renewal of their collaboration. Donny reluctantly agrees.

Cast and characters

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Main

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Recurring

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Guest

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  • Tom Durant Pritchard as Jason, host of a comedy competition
  • Laura Smyth as Glenda, M.C. of the comedy competition
  • Will Hislop as Billy, a fellow comedian
  • Amanda Root as Elle, Donny's mother
  • Mark Lewis Jones as Gerry, Donny's father
  • Hugh Coles as Francis, Donny's friend from drama school
  • Josh Finan as Diggsy, a new employee at the pub
  • Alexandria Riley as Detective Culver, the detective assigned to Donny's case

Episodes

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All seven episodes were simultaneously released on Netflix on 11 April 2024.[3]

No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal release date
1"Episode 1"Weronika TofilskaRichard Gadd11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)
In 2015, while working at a pub in London, struggling comedian Donny Dunn gives a free cup of tea to a distraught customer. The customer, Martha Scott, becomes a regular, claiming she is a wealthy lawyer and entertaining Donny with stories. She becomes increasingly flirtatious, calling him "Baby Reindeer" and other nicknames. She begins emailing him hundreds of times a day, making him uncomfortable. He reluctantly takes her for coffee but is disturbed when Martha has a public outburst. He follows her home, discovering she lives in a cluttered apartment on a council estate, and flees after she notices him. Martha views this as a development in their relationship. She shows up uninvited to Donny's performance at a local comedy competition, and her interruptions help him secure a position in the semi-finals. She confesses her love to Donny, has another outburst when he tries to reject her politely, and sends him a friend request on Facebook. Donny discovers that she is a convicted stalker. He nevertheless accepts her friend request.
2"Episode 2"Weronika TofilskaRichard Gadd11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)
Donny has secretly been dating Teri, a transgender American therapist. Despite seeking out a trans partner, Donny is ashamed of his feelings and has told Teri he is a builder named Tony. Martha's stalking intensifies. She leaves comments on every photo on Donny's Facebook profile and jealously sends harassing messages to his ex-girlfriend Keeley, whose mother, Liz, is Donny's landlady. Martha also begins to follow him home after his shifts at the pub. Teri encourages Donny to go to the police, but he refuses, believing Martha is harmless. He attempts to get his co-workers to ban her from the pub, but one of them sends her a reply from Donny's account asking for anal sex as a joke, leading her to believe he returns her feelings. Donny has a successful date with Teri while high on cocaine, but when Teri asks Donny to kiss her in public, he panics and abandons her on the Underground. As he walks home, Martha follows him, pushes him against a wall, and gropes his crotch.
3"Episode 3"Weronika TofilskaRichard Gadd11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)
Donny confesses his actions and real name to Teri, who angrily asks him to leave. Martha befriends Liz under a false name, leaving a scantily clad photo of herself in Donny's bedroom. Donny threatens her with the police, and she disappears from his home and work, only to appear as a permanent fixture at a bus stop across from his home. Donny becomes sympathetic to Martha as she lapses into a fugue state but asks her to leave him alone, framing it as a breakup in an attempt to give her closure. Martha's contact with Donny briefly ceases. Teri attends the comedy semi-finals, interested in giving Donny a second chance. His performance is interrupted when Martha begins heckling him from the audience, escalating to a violent rage when he mocks her from the stage. She is thrown out but later tries to break into his dressing room before pursuing him and Teri. Donny and Teri agree to resume their relationship. Their date is interrupted when an enraged Martha spews a barrage of xenophobic and transphobic insults and assaults Teri, pulling out a chunk of her hair.
4"Episode 4"Weronika TofilskaRichard Gadd11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)
Six months later, Donny attempts to report Martha to the police. When the officer asks him why it took him so long to report her, he flashes back to a few years earlier. As a young comedian in Edinburgh, he has a chance encounter with Darrien, the writer of a successful television show, who has worked with Donny's comedy idols. Darrien mentors him and encourages him to move to London before suddenly disappearing from his life. Donny moves to Oxford and attends drama school, where he meets and moves in with Keeley. He receives a call from Darrien and begins writing a television pilot under his guidance. Not realising Darrien is grooming him, Donny regularly spends weekend-long "working sessions" at Darrien's apartment. Darrien encourages Donny to do drugs and sexually assaults him while he is high. Eventually, Darrien rapes Donny while he is on LSD and GHB. Donny finally leaves Darrien, but his relationship with Keeley deteriorates. Feeling confused and angry, Donny subjects himself to reckless sexual encounters with multiple partners of all genders. In the present, due to his guilt over Darrien's assault and never reporting him, Donny fails to give the police an accurate report of Martha's stalking.
5"Episode 5"Josephine BornebuschRichard Gadd11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)
Martha is banned from Donny's pub after causing a scene while he works. After she assaults Keeley on the street, Liz asks Donny to move out. He moves into a flat with friends from drama school but is dismayed to learn that they spend every night throwing drug-fuelled parties. He spends increasing time with Teri, hiding in her flat and coming out to her as bisexual for the first time. Their relationship begins to suffer due to her trauma over Martha's attack and his inability to maintain an erection, caused by his trauma from Martha and Darrien. Teri convinces him to report Martha again. At the station, he finally gets an officer to look up Martha. After realising she has prior convictions, the police take the case seriously. Martha complies with the police and ceases contact with Donny. However, he finds himself obsessing over her, masturbating to a picture of her and imagining himself having sex with her. This helps him successfully have sex with Teri, and their relationship improves. His mother leaves a frantic voicemail, having been told by Martha that Donny is in a hospital after an accident.
6"Episode 6"Josephine BornebuschRichard Gadd11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)

Donny is horrified to realise Martha has begun harassing his parents and has accused his father of being a paedophile, getting him in trouble at work. After the police are unhelpful, Donny tries to entrap Martha into violating no-contact. However, Martha has been recording all their interactions, and he is cautioned by the police. As a result, Teri breaks up with him. The day before Donny is set to perform in the comedy competition finals, Martha returns to Donny's pub to harass him. When he brings up her previous stalking charges, she attacks him, smashing a glass into his face. His co-workers convince Donny not to press charges, which would reveal their mismanagement of the pub, and he complies. At the competition, Donny gives up on his act after a joke does not land and instead breaks down on stage, confessing to the audience in frank detail his guilt, shame, and self-hatred after his rape, stalking, and his poor management of his relationship with Teri, before walking out of the theatre.

The episode is dedicated to the memory of Llewellyn Harrison, who worked as a key grip on Baby Reindeer.[4]
7"Episode 7"Josephine BornebuschRichard Gadd11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)
A video of Donny's confession goes viral, significantly boosting his career. Martha finds his phone number and leaves him hundreds of voicemails. When she threatens to tell his parents about his rape and sexuality, he travels to Fife, Scotland, and tells his parents everything. His father reveals that, growing up in the Catholic Church, he too was sexually abused. After Martha leaves a voicemail threatening to stab his parents, he finally reports her. Martha is sentenced to nine months in prison and five years of probation. Donny quits comedy and, at Keeley's urging, moves back into Liz's house. Upon finding the screenplay he was writing for Darrien, Donny visits Darrien but fails to confront him. Darrien, having seen Donny's video, offers him a writing job. Donny accepts but has a panic attack afterwards. Stopping at a pub, he listens to a voicemail where Martha explains that she calls him "Baby Reindeer" because he reminds her of a stuffed animal she would hug when her parents fought during her childhood. Donny breaks down in tears and orders a drink but realises he has forgotten his wallet. Sympathetic, the barman gives Donny the drink for free, mirroring his first encounter with Martha.

Production

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Development and casting

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The series was announced in December 2020, with Richard Gadd set to write the series and star. Clerkenwell Films was set to produce.[5] Weronika Tofilska was added as the director in August 2022,[6] with Josephine Bornebusch announced as an additional director in March 2023.[7] Richard Gadd was cast alongside the series announcement.[5] Jessica Gunning was cast on 26 August 2022.[6] Nava Mau was announced as a cast member in March 2023.[7]

Filming

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The Stag's Head, Hoxton served as the exterior of the Heart pub

Filming began in mid-August 2022 in the Grassmarket, Edinburgh,[8][6] and continued in London in September.[9]

Among the filming locations in London were the Stag's Head pub in Hoxton, which was used for exterior scenes at the Heart pub, the Regent's Canal in Haggerston, and the Royal Vauxhall Tavern. Donny's stand-up comedy shows were filmed at Bethnal Green Working Men's Club, the Rivoli Ballroom in Brockley and The Comedy Store in Leicester Square. Darrien's apartment was filmed inside Marsham Court in Victoria. In Edinburgh, the Hoppy pub in Meadowbank, Edinburgh served as the exterior of the Festival Fringe venue for Donny's comedy show (interior scenes were filmed in the Army & Navy pub in Stoke Newington, London). Other exterior locations are the Royal Mile and the Grassmarket, where Donny is shown walking along the street amid festival activities.[10]

Filming wrapped by early March 2023.[7]

Reception

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Critical response

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The series received critical acclaim.[a] On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, 98% of 58 critics gave the series a positive review, with an average rating of 8.7/10. The website's consensus reads: "A bracing work of autofiction by creator and star Richard Gadd, Baby Reindeer can be a punishing watch but richly rewards viewers with its emotional complexity and excellent performances."[17] On Metacritic, the series holds a weighted average score of 88 out of 100 based on 17 critics.[16]

Audience viewership

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Baby Reindeer debuted at number five on Netflix's Top 10 TV English titles for the tracking week of 8–14 April 2024, with 10.4 million hours viewed.[18] On the following week, it climbed to number one and garnered 52.8 million viewing hours.[19] The series remained at the same position for its third and fourth weeks, earning 87.4 and 73.6 million viewing hours.[20][21]

Awards and nominations

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Award Date of ceremony Category Nominee(s) Result Ref.
Artios Awards 12 February 2025 Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Limited Series Nina Gold, Martin Ware Pending [22]
Astra TV Awards 8 December 2024 Best Limited Series Baby Reindeer Pending [23]
Best Actor in a Limited Series or TV Movie Richard Gadd Pending
Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or TV Movie Tom Goodman-Hill Pending
Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or TV Movie Jessica Gunning Pending
Nava Mau Pending
Best Directing in a Limited Series or TV Movie Weronika Tofilska (for "Episode 1") Pending
Best Writing in a Limited Series or TV Movie Richard Gadd Pending
Gotham TV Awards 4 June 2024 Breakthrough Limited Series Baby Reindeer Won [24]
[25]
Outstanding Performance in a Limited Series Richard Gadd Nominated
Primetime Emmy Awards 15 September 2024 Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series Richard Gadd, Wim De Greef, Petra Fried,
Matt Jarvis, Ed Macdonald, and Matthew Mulot 		Won [26]
[27]
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Richard Gadd Won
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Tom Goodman-Hill (for "Episode 4") Nominated
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Jessica Gunning (for "Episode 1") Won
Nava Mau (for "Episode 5") Nominated
Outstanding Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Weronika Tofilska (for "Episode 4") Nominated
Outstanding Writing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Richard Gadd Won
8 September 2024 Outstanding Casting for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Nina Gold and Martin Ware Won
Outstanding Contemporary Costumes Mekel Bailey and Imogen Holness (for "Episode 4") Nominated
Outstanding Music Supervision Catherine Grieves (for "Episode 4") Nominated
Outstanding Picture Editing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Peter H. Oliver and Benjamin Gerstein (for "Episode 4") Won
Television Critics
Association Awards 		12 July 2024 Program of the Year Baby Reindeer Nominated [28]
Outstanding Achievement in Drama Nominated
Outstanding Achievement in Movies, Miniseries and Specials Won
Outstanding New Program Nominated
Individual Achievement in Drama Richard Gadd Nominated
Hollywood Music in Media Awards 20 November 2024 Music Supervision – Television Catherine Grieves Pending [29]

Real-life inspiration

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Speculation about real-life inspirations for the show's fictional characters began to emerge online, as fans attempted to infer their identities on social media. Gadd asked fans to stop any kind of speculation in an April 2024 statement.[30] After being falsely accused online of being the real-life counterpart to the character Darrien, theatre director Sean Foley reported the false allegations to the police.[31] This led to a police investigation.[31] Gadd confirmed that Foley was not behind the character.[30]

On 9 May 2024, 59-year-old Scottish law graduate Fiona Muir-Harvey claimed to be the real-life inspiration for Martha in an interview on Piers Morgan Uncensored,[32] with previous tweets from an account linked to Muir-Harvey leading to increased suspicion.[33] These included a reference to hanging curtains, a sexually suggestive phrase which was later used in the script of Baby Reindeer.[34] During her Uncensored interview, Harvey admitted she had met Gadd several times at The Hawley Arms, Camden, but denied sending him 41,000 emails or going to his home, and stated she was planning to commence legal action against both Gadd and Netflix. She admitted to sending up to 10 emails and a letter as well as several tweets.[35] She later claimed she was paid £250 to appear, and that the interview left her feeling "a bit used".[36] The interview drew some criticism, questioning the ethics behind the decision.[37] Laura Wray, a lawyer and widow of the Scottish politician Jimmy Wray, stated that she had briefly employed Harvey at her law firm in 1997, and that Harvey had made abusive social media posts after losing her job.[38]

On 6 June, Harvey sued Netflix for $170 million, claiming that the show has "viciously destroyed" her.[39][40] On September 27, U.S. Judge Gary Klausner dismissed Harvey's negligence and gross negligence claims, along with her request for punitive damages, but allowed her to continue the defamation case against Netflix, noting that Netflix misrepresented the show as a "true story" and failed to verify Gadd's claims.[41][42]

Notes

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  1. ^ Multiple references:[11][12][13][14][15][16]

References

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  1. ^ Donaldson, Kayleigh (24 April 2024). "Baby Reindeer: Netflix's True Crime Disease Poisons the Show". TheWrap. Archived from the original on 25 April 2024. Retrieved 25 April 2024.
  2. ^ Billington, Alex (22 March 2024). "Netflix Trailer for 'Baby Reindeer' Awkward Stalker Dark Comedy Series". FirstShowing.net. Archived from the original on 29 March 2024. Retrieved 25 April 2024.
  3. ^ Hudspeth, Christopher. "What Is Baby Reindeer? The True Story and New Series Explained". Netflix Tudum. Archived from the original on 11 April 2024. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  4. ^ Venn, Lydia (18 April 2024). "Who was Llewellyn Harrison, whom Baby Reindeer is dedicated to?". Cosmopolitan. Archived from the original on 22 April 2024. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
  5. ^ a b Ravindran, Manori (13 December 2020). "Netflix Unveils New U.K. Projects With Sam Mendes, Rowan Atkinson, Andy Serkis". Variety. Archived from the original on 14 November 2021. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
  6. ^ a b c Whittock, Jesse (26 August 2022). "'Pride' & 'Back' Actress Jessica Gunning Cast Opposite Richard Gadd In Netflix's 'Baby Reindeer'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 8 October 2022. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
  7. ^ a b c Whittock, Jesse (3 March 2023). "'Baby Reindeer': Nava Mau Cast In Netflix Drama From Richard Gadd". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 28 March 2023. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  8. ^ Carrell, Severin (23 August 2022). "Edinburgh faces rat surge due to refuse workers' strike, warn heritage leaders". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 8 October 2022. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
  9. ^ "Now Filming in London: September 2022". Film London. 7 September 2022. Archived from the original on 4 November 2022. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
  10. ^ Semlyen, Phil de (25 April 2024). "Where was 'Baby Reindeer' filmed? All the filming locations from the Netflix drama". Time Out. Archived from the original on 7 May 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  11. ^ Stedman, Alex (6 June 2024). "Baby Reindeer's 'Real Martha' Hits Netflix With $170 Million Defamation Lawsuit". IGN. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
  12. ^ Kroll, Justin (23 April 2024). "'Baby Reindeer' Creator And Star Richard Gadd Signs With UTA". Deadline. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
  13. ^ "Baby Reindeer Star Nava Mau Offers A Different Take On The Smash Netflix Series". HuffPost UK. 11 May 2024. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
  14. ^ Li, Shirley (15 May 2024). "The 'Baby Reindeer' Mess Was Inevitable". The Atlantic. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
  15. ^ Shaw, Vicky (6 May 2024). "Baby Reindeer success comes amid jump in subscription spending – Barclays". The Independent. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
  16. ^ a b "Baby Reindeer: Season 1". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
  17. ^ "Baby Reindeer: Limited Series". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on 23 April 2024. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
  18. ^ "Netflix Global Top 10". Netflix. 14 April 2024. Retrieved 30 April 2024.
  19. ^ "Netflix Global Top 10". Netflix. 21 April 2024. Retrieved 30 April 2024.
  20. ^ "Netflix Global Top 10". Netflix. 28 April 2024. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
  21. ^ "Netflix Global Top 10". Netflix. 5 May 2024. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
  22. ^ Rice, Lynette (1 November 2024). "Artios Awards Nominees Revealed: Netflix Leads With 17 Nominations, HBO/Max With 6". Deadline. Retrieved 2 November 2024.
  23. ^ "The 2024 Astra TV Awards Nominations Have Arrived". Hollywood Creative Alliance. 9 July 2024. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  24. ^ Verhoeven, Beatrice (14 May 2024). "'Baby Reindeer,' 'The Curse,' 'Shogun' Among Inaugural Gotham TV Awards Nominees". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
  25. ^ Lewis, Hilary (4 June 2024). "2024 Gotham TV Awards: 'Baby Reindeer,' 'Mr. and Mrs. Smith,' 'Colin From Accounts' Top Winners". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
  26. ^ "Baby Reindeer". Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. 17 July 2024. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  27. ^ White, Peter (17 July 2024). "Netflix Leads Total Emmy Nominations But FX Comes in Close Second with Record Haul Ahead of HBO". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  28. ^ Longeretta, Emily (10 June 2024). "'Baby Reindeer', 'Ripley' and 'Shogun' Lead 2024 TCA Awards Nominations: Full List". Variety. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
  29. ^ Willman, Chris (6 November 2024). "Hollywood Music in Media Awards Noms Led by 'Emilia Pérez' and 'Blitz,' With Elton John, Hans Zimmer and Scores More Among the Nominees". Hollywood Music in Media Awards. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
  30. ^ a b Guy, Zoe (23 April 2024). "Baby Reindeer Creator Asks Fans to Stop Looking for Real-Life Characters". Vulture. Archived from the original on 24 April 2024. Retrieved 25 April 2024.
  31. ^ a b McLoughlin, Lisa (24 April 2024). "Baby Reindeer prompts police investigation after false accusations". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 23 April 2024. Retrieved 25 April 2024.
  32. ^ Lammers, Tim. "'Baby Reindeer': Real 'Martha' Reveals Identity In Photo With Piers Morgan". Forbes. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
  33. ^ "Baby Reindeer: Fiona Harvey says she will sue Netflix and writer Richard Gadd". BBC News. 10 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
  34. ^ Burgos, Jenzia (13 May 2024). "Fiona Harvey's Tweets Were Found by Baby Reindeer Fans—Here's What She Said to Richard Gadd". Yahoo Life. Archived from the original on 26 May 2024. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
  35. ^ Dingwall, John (15 May 2024). "Real-life Martha Fiona Harvey to sue Netflix with lawyer who defended Ryan Giggs". Aberdeen Live. Archived from the original on 20 May 2024. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  36. ^ Jacobs, Eammon (9 May 2024). "The woman outed as the alleged 'Baby Reindeer' stalker says she felt 'used' in Piers Morgan interview, where she denied harassing Richard Gadd and called him 'psychotic'". Business Insider. Retrieved 13 May 2024.
  37. ^ Butler, Alexander (10 May 2024). "Viewers horrified by Piers Morgan's 'excruciating' 'unethical' interview with real-life Baby Reindeer Martha". The Independent. Retrieved 13 May 2024.
  38. ^ Bryant, Tom (13 May 2024). "'I was stalked by real-life Baby Reindeer Martha - now I'm scared again'". Aberdeen Live. Archived from the original on 23 May 2024. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  39. ^ Yang, Maya (6 June 2024). "Baby Reindeer: woman who claims to be real-life Martha sues Netflix for $170m". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  40. ^ Vernon, Will; Matza, Max (6 June 2024). "Woman sues Netflix for $170m over Baby Reindeer character". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  41. ^ Cain, Sian (30 September 2024). "Baby Reindeer was wrongly billed by Netflix as a 'true story', judge finds". The Guardian.
  42. ^ "Netflix fails to get Baby Reindeer lawsuit dropped". www.bbc.com.
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