'Real-life' Martha rages 'I'm the victim' at Baby Reindeer after receiving death threats

Baby Reindeer stars Jessica Gunning who played 'real-life' Martha (Image: Ed Miller/Netflix)

The woman branded the real-life "Martha" - a depicted stalker in the Netflix series Baby Reindeer, has broken her silence.

Identified by online sleuths as the inspiration behind the character Martha, she's been inadvertently thrust into the spotlight after the show's writer Richard Gadd based the series on his own unsettling experiences of harassment.

The Scottish lady, who now lives in London, claims she has become subject to "death threats as a result of his show" and condemns the Netflix drama for being "a gross intrusion into my privacy, lamenting: "I don't want people to know where I live but I will not be silenced."

The chilling narrative of Baby Reindeer goes back a decade, when Gadd was making a name for himself within the UK comedy circuit with shows like Breaking Gadd, Waiting for Gaddot, and Monkey See Monkey Do. Unbeknownst to his audiences, the comedian was enduring a living nightmare away from the stage.

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After innocuously offering an obsessive fan a free cup of tea at work, Gadd found himself at the receiving end of a relentless campaign of harassment that threw his life into chaos. "At its peak, it was almost unbearable," he admitted during a Channel 4 interview, reports the Mirror.

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Actress Jessica Gunning played Martha who stalked comedian Richard Gadd (Image: Netflix)

Gadd transformed his personal trauma into a comedy show, which later became a hit Netflix series released earlier this month. Despite Gadd's plea for viewers not to speculate about the real-life inspirations behind the characters in the show, many fans of Baby Reindeer managed to identify the actual "Martha" from his narrative.

The woman accused of being the real-life "Martha" spoke to the Daily Record, stating that her life has been turned upside down due to the Scottish comedian's dramatised retelling. Ironically, she has experienced stalking since Baby Reindeer became an overnight sensation and piqued national interest.

"I'm the victim here, not Richard Gadd. I've received death threats as a result of his show," the Scottish woman stated, adding: "Someone online threatened, 'If I find you I will kill you'. A man in North Carolina said that he and others were going to stalk me like I supposedly stalked Gadd."

The woman, who prefers to remain anonymous, is a 58 year old law graduate from Aberdeen University. She told the publication that she hasn't yet watched Baby Reindeer but has seen "various things".

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Refuting Gadd's allegations that she stalked him, she asserted: "I was in Richard Gadd's company on occasions but I didn't stalk him as he alleges. His story is a gross intrusion into my privacy. I haven't seen him for 12 years."

In the gripping drama Baby Reindeer, Jessica Gunning takes on the role of Martha, and she's recently urged the public to halt their hunt for the real-life Martha. Speaking to the same publication, the woman who claims to be the inspiration behind Martha expressed her thoughts on Gunning's performance: "I don't think I look like that woman actress playing Martha."

The controversy has escalated as a police probe was initiated when fans of the Netflix series wrongly identified an individual as his sexual abuser depicted in the show, leading to severe online abuse and threats. The show's fourth episode delivers a disturbing depiction of Gadd's alter ego, Donny, suffering sexual abuse at the hands of a fictional male TV writer named Darrien, which triggered rampant conjecture among viewers about the true identity of the character.

Subsequently, a man wrongfully accused by the audience has reported receiving intimidating messages on social media, prompting police action. A spokesperson for the British police stated: "We're investigating after a man reported receiving threatening messages on social media. Enquiries are at an early stage and we are in the process of gathering information from the victim."

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Gadd himself has called for restraint from the audience in trying to uncover the real individuals the characters are based on. Amidst this turmoil, Netflix has kept quiet, sparking debate over whether they have taken sufficient steps to safeguard the privacy of those portrayed in the series.

"It is the number one thing on Netflix, I believe. I didn't find any of it that funny. Obviously, I don't want people to know where I live but I will not be silenced," declared the real-life Martha in her latest interview. She continued by branding writer and creator Gadd "a nightmare" and expressed her desire to "get on with the rest of my life".

Richard Gadd and Netflix have been contacted for a response.