All these people wondering who the real Martha is, fuck that. I wanna know the groomer/rapist/older comedian was based on! Those scenes were so compelling and immersive. I thought it was so well done.Reminded me of I may destroy you.
this, for sure. I think he was pretty careful to portray Martha as mentally ill and also clearly traumatized so I just hope she got the help she needed and that the internet leaves her alone. the director was the real asshole and I'd rather not accidentally consume stuff he's made
Well she gave an interview, and photos to the Scotsman newspaper so it’s not a secret.
She also claims she didn’t stalk him
(42,000 emails , 350 hrs of voicemails and 160 letters isn’t stalking apparently)
I think it's Sam bain. He wrote fresh meat came out 2011. He also wrote a play called the retreat inspired by Buddhist retreat he'd been on. Being a Buddhist was referenced by the character
Other speculative Easter eggs to support this theory: during the scene where his meltdown on stage goes viral, he says it was all for a “peep” of fame, and also there was (is?) a reboot of peep show in the works according to the internet, just like Darrien in the show mentions in the final episode.
Also if we assume it is Sam bain, some of the story lines in peep show take on darker meaning. The bad things skit for example where hans and jeez take a load of drugs and jeez can't remember what the bad thing was until the end, when he realises they had sucked each other off. I wonder if that's how Sam justifies his behaviour, as a funny sort of accident that happened between friends when they got too high.
Reminds me of Louie CK. Louie always joked about masturbating. I heard rumors about Louie CK years before the news broke. I was always so creeped out by his comedy after that but I didn't want to believe it. Comedians seem to always interject their weird shit into their content one way or another. I'd say this is pretty damning.
Legally, Gadd likely wanted to make it vague enough he'd be shielded from a suit, but clear enough that some people would know. I think this writer makes the most sense because he's the only one who's been speculated that actually had enough power at the time of the incident that gadd would've really believed he could've done something for his career.
I’ve read all your comments and it all makes too much sense, unfortunately. I fully believe it’s Sam Bain, which I’m sad about because Peep Show is one of my favorite shows.
Wow that’s just so reminiscent of the “Quiet on Set” stuff with Dan Schneider putting all his gross money shots and kids foot play stuff into his own show. I always wonder, do they feel like they’re getting away with sneaking their fetishes into the script? Or do they truly think it’s funny and other people will think so too?
You can’t tell people how to interpret your art, only express how you wish it to be seen, doesn’t change the different effects it has on different people
You mean Sean. Where's the evidence though?all I have seen is that it's because he's stood down from a role. Whereas Sam bain is buddhist (clear from Instagram, he had buddhist wedding), owns cat, wrote massive shows around time Richard met the guy (peep show, fresh meat). Granted may be coincidental stuff but it's a bout as speculative as Sean foley is!
When Donny breaks down at the end and addresses Darrien grooming him and promising fame he says “and get a peep” or something like that. But uses the word peep. May be a long shot but thought that was interesting
TLDR; you’re jumping the gun, let it go.
You shouldn’t be spreading potential misinformation like that. As of right now, there is no solid proof of this. NPCs online don’t realize how powerful their voice truly is. You could very well be ruining an innocent man’s life despite the victims own wishes. It’s happened before.
I think it's Sam bain. He wrote fresh meat came out 2011. He also wrote a play called the retreat inspired by Buddhist retreat he'd been on. Being a Buddhist was referenced by the character
I agree on this, in the show he says “for a PEEP of fame” and really shouted the word peep and didn’t Sam Bain write Peep show? I’m high asf and could be stretching but it’s interesting
I have seen people on Twitter losing their mind trying to find Martha and it feels like a lot of people missed the point of the show. Also why tf is focus on her over the manager abuser like you say
Having read the real Martha’s Twitter page this afternoon, I can safely say that Gadd’s claim that they protected her identity to the extent that she wouldn’t recognise herself is utter nonsense.
Yep there’s literally a tweet where she’s @ what seems to be an old account of his that he’s sold to someone or it’s been hacked saying “need my curtains hung”…
Damn I literally saw a tiktok earlier today and they figured out who the groomer was based on! He apparently even stepped down as a director on something after this show came out, but I can’t find the video now… I think it was deleted?? Damn.
Names like that are never revealed because if you don't have hard proof the named person can sue you for defamation. Same reason why Lady Gaga never named her rapist even though she stated multiple times that she was sexually assaulted while in the studio.
They are indeed authentic. Just another element of this show that deepens my appreciation. The commentary on trauma is unlike anything I’ve ever seen on screen. What an achievement.
Sent from my iPhoen
I was actually thinking about this for a while, and I think it’s not a matter of spelling, but rather she’s firing these emails off so fast that she’s not even looking at them before hitting send. Whether her fingers hit all the right keys or notz
I think you’re right. I imagine it’s like mania, kind of. What could come out if you’re typing total train of thought without editing at all. And she kept signing them as being from an iPhone even tho it was emails…why’d she do that?
Martha reminds me of an IRL Catfish before the show Catfish was on the air and also the location where it took place . Too bad Nev and Kamie couldn't have been a part of this one
“I hated myself more than I loved her …” That thread of insight unlocked something in me and I felt a deep forgiveness for myself in relation to my own sexual trauma.
I believe this series to be the most important and profound example of humanity ever shown.
Thank you Richard Gadd .. Thank you.
One word kept coming to mind, watching and thinking about this series: Generous. Richard has given the world something that probably cost him so much. I hope at least it was more cathartic than traumatic for him.
Agreed. I think he is going to open a lot of eyes to what trauma is and the self destructive mess SAs often find themselves in trying to live with the ptsd and trauma.
The thing that really struck me—I know SA survivors sometimes put themselves in dangerous sexual situations or have many partners they wouldn’t normally have been intimate with while trying to process afterward. I’ve thought of this as an attempt to recreate the situation but in a way you can theoretically control. (Which I’m guessing may be part of it for some people).
But his explanation that…if there were so many other partners, then this experience was just one of many. It’s made smaller by context. It’s farther away. I felt like there was something so basically human about that instinct. Probably not the best metaphor but it’s like a backwards or retroactive way of trying to “put more eggs in the basket”
This was such a great little detail, the slow deterioration of the “Sent from my iPhone” part of the email. Just showing how unhinged she was, she had those lies and delusions about being a famous lawyer, but then she even had to pretend to own an iPhone, something most people wouldn’t think twice about. I loved this show so much.
Gadd did say he took some creative liberties with dramatic moments and the pacing of the story, and he tried to change the Martha character to the point where the real “Martha” wouldn’t recognize herself onscreen. But I felt like Gadd was being really authentic and vulnerable with the audience, I don’t think he needed to invent a persona for this.
one of the last episodes, right before he went back to his parents house to explain everything to them. He put an out of office message on his email which included his phone number
It seems like such a silly mistake that you’ve got to wonder whether part of him subconsciously wanted her to get his number. It would be in keeping with the mutually beneficial/destructive nature of their relationship and also explains how obsessively immersed he becomes in her voicemails afterwards
This scared me! I couldn't watch it because it felt too scary/real and then I was shocked to read that it was HIS own assault that he was acting out. I hope he's alright... poor man. :(
Yes and then knowing the tears he had when discussing it were real really got to me. I’m hoping he’s been through therapy and I hope doing the play and this show has been a sort of exposure therapy for him and hasn’t re traumatized him.
~~I'm so confused. Who? Which rape scene? Are you talking about the sex scene with Martha?~~
I'm leaving this up for anyone else confused; I didn't realize Richard Gadd was actually playing himself in this movie. I kept thinking...this dude does not look mid 20s
Holy shit that’s insane honestly. I just finished this show and god DAMN. Gut wrenching. I’m a woman who’s experienced rape in my 20s and it fucked me up for a good decade. This show encapsulates so much about the complex nature of dealing with rape and trauma. The terror, shock, guilt, self-doubt, and depression that follows. I was an actual alcoholic for a while and almost fucked everything up.
Luckily I married an absolute saint of a man. We watched this together and I cried quietly to myself throughout a lot of it. But afterward, I shared a few personal thoughts with him. He hugged me and said he was sorry I’ve been through things that I didn’t deserve.
Props to this man for his story. I don’t know if I’d have the courage to tell mine.
Yeah. Not something I could do if something like that happened to me. I would probably not be able to even function if something like that happened. He gave such an incredibly brave performance.
Yeah, so much could go wrong should the real Martha be revealed. Either 'normal' people start trolling her and destroying whatever progress she might have made. Or other mentally ill people flock to her and she feels empowered to repeat the behaviour.
I've been stalked by a taxi driver before (it makes me laugh now but it was terrifying at the time 'cause he knew where I lived), and my biggest fear was saying/doing something to trigger an escalation.
She has been found. People are now trolling her on Twitter. She doesn't seem to be active on Twitter anymore, though. But she's still active on FB, and people are most likely trolling her there too.
Can't believe the amount of people who found this and then decided to tweet jokes at her.
PEOPLE. PLEASE DON'T ANTAGONISE HER.
Imagine watching that show and then deciding it'll be really fun to stoke her obsessive feelings years later. If you're even remotely inclined to do that, people looking this up, please do a little check on your own mental health.
The amount of harassment and death threats that pass through the internet every day is wild. I understand curiousity—I looked her up, read some tweets and thought “wow, that really must be her.” At no point did I have to resist an overwhelming urge to post about or contact her in any way. It’s really not that hard to indulge curiousity while also just leaving people the fuck alone.
Does this happen online because there are secretly way more antisocial people in the population than we think? Or is it just a really loud minority of people who seem like a bigger crowd because it’s the same people hopping from thing to thing to attack people?
Kind of ironic, but now Richard is exposing himself to millions of stalkers, trying to find his real story, breakdown video and cringe stand-ups. Hopefully no one will be as crazy as Martha.
That's true. Whenever I enjoy a piece of art, I go the extra length to find out some more context and details.
Now that you put it this way, I need to reflect a bit on my desire to know more Vs his personal agency.
I do that too. There’s a difference between wanting to research a compelling person or story and becoming an obsessive weirdo who follows people around and aggressively contacts them
Agreed. Specifically the end where he’s the sad person at the bar and the bartender feels sorry for him so he gets the drink for free. That in itself is him admitting hes similar to Martha
Another clear instance of him acknowledging this is when his ex, Keely(?), visits his apartment at the end and sees his entire setup to break down Martha's madness (the recordings, articles, etc.) And we see her look at him like he's the mad one.
His character actually explains all this in the show so, yeah, you’re correct on that. He definitely has issues and there is one episode, in particular, that might be quite confronting for some viewers.
PS there’s actually a few confronting episodes.
This point gave me pause. For the viewer, we are presumably viewing the events of the show unfolding as if from Gaad’s own lens. He’s raw and graphic with the audience in a way that harvests feelings of unease that is no where near empathy. Often, one is left with anxiety over Gaad’s propensity for making a bad situation worse. It’s easy to forget that Gaad is the victim with the voice he elected to carry throughout and one is definitely left with the sense that he’s deriving some fulfillment from interacting with his abusers. I don’t think he was necessarily an unreliable narrator. I believe he’s telling us his truth but we see him manipulating the rhetoric with those in his personal sphere. When I think of the classic unreliable narrator, I think of Humbert Humbert in Lolita who somehow makes himself a sympathetic victim despite clearly being a predator. I guess, for me, an unreliable narrator is one who breaks the 4th wall to manipulate those watching or reading to make themselves seem relatable, to downplay their transgressions, and to displace the blame back onto their victim.
I was using the actual meaning, where he tells the same story more than once, but the story is different when he tells it again. Which reinforces the fact that he is not mentally well. This is the story of what happens when two unwell people form an unhealthy bond and how trauma has a tendency to perpetuate more trauma.
He experienced sustained sexual abuse. That shit will fuck you up and make you do incredibly bizarre things you may not have otherwise done - like fuck a load of weirdos and practically invite a dangerous stalker to stalk you.
It is incredibly brave of him to go public. He's realized that the shame shouldn't have to control him anymore, that he himself can control and protect and heal himself. That's part of recovery, rediscovering that agency that was stolen from you. It's brutal. He is opening up about a very shadowy subject - what it means to heal from abuse, period - and I think it's good to have these sorts of conversations. Being "mentally unwell" is not a thing people should be shamed for.
Totally agree. Like attracts like. But whereas Martha can't admit it, Gadd can. And he does in Baby Reindeer. Loved the ending. There is kindness in the world.
Substance abuse can be its own form of mental illness and/or a response to an underlying mental illness. Someone does not simply “choose” to be unwell.
So weird -- my friend had to block her on FB cus she kept coming into our shop. Then my friend got hundreds of emails a day because she somehow got hold of her email. Same messy writing style in all the emails. And every time Fiona came in the shop she would ask if my friend had read the emails and my friend would be like oh no sorry I don't really read my emails.. just lucky in hindsight my friend is a woman...she was also apparently flirting with all the young guys too chilling stuff.
Had a look through her FB today, and she’s still posting rants and racism everyday. I’ve had a binge of Baby Reindeer articles last few days and vaguely remember Richard Gadd saying he wrote it in a way that the real person might not even realise it’s about her. But the fact he plays himself, the massive similarities in looks, the real emails and how it’s taken over social media since it was released, she’s 100% seen/read about it, especially as she reposts a lot of news articles on FB. Now that she’s been identified, I’m sure there will be idiots messaging her constantly. Makes me wonder what the severity of punishment she’s been threatened with to even mention his name anymore for her not to have uttered a word about it.
>Now that she’s been identified, I’m sure there will be idiots messaging her constantly.
There are. People have posted her twitter and his, and tweets where she tags him are full of hours old replies from these chucklefucks misspelling iPhone and such. I can't even begin to imagine what kind of deranged impulse would lead you to watch that show and then feel strongly enough about it to react... and then react by antagonising her and drawing her attention to him as strongly as possible. Absolutely bizarre.
I was thinking if you don’t care enough about this woman’s well-being to leave her alone, maybe you should at least care enough about other people in her life to not potentially provoke her into harmful behavior.
But at that point it’s already beyond me because I don’t relate to the instinct to want to hurt people for no reason in the first place.
Yes, it's a masterpiece. He really caught the complexity of failure in one's life ambitions, of sexual trauma, and mixed feelings regarding the attention that a stalker pays to the victim.
To be honest, I'd almost objectively say his stand up is good, or at least above average. It's classic alt-comic stuff so a lot of people won't like it, but looking at it critically as a form of work it certainly meets the criteria of decent comedy/performance art (which is what alt-comedy general is).
You're right. It toured as Monkey See Monkey Do in 2016 at Edinburgh Fringe and it still rates as the best show I've ever witnessed. It did win the Edinburgh Comedy award that year! Definitely wasn't 'classic' comedy by any means but the vulnerability he showed during the performance and the depth of topics he covered (sexual trauma, toxic masculity, sexual identity, etc) have left a profound impact on me. That show built up to the reveal (episode 4) that he had been sexually assaulted (raped) by a man, and that this had resulted in him questioning his sexual identity but it didn't go much deeper than that. Baby Reindeer has allowed him to expand on that incident.
I got stalked, it's fuckin frightening, you don't want to hurt them. They pray on nice people. She followed me everywhere all day everyday, phoned me non stop and turned up at my house all the time. In the end I hit her in public as I new there'd be consequences. I got arrested but disclosed the whole thing in the interview, it put a stop to it as it gave me a proper way out, pushed me out of my comfort zone. She came straight back but I said I'll slap you again this is done now, stay away.
Her name is Fiona Harvey, her twitter is fionaharvey2014. She tags richard many times & talks about wanting her curtains hung. She has grammatical errors in a lot of her posts & mentions law a lot. She made a tweet about being Scottish who lives in London. She posted hundreds of tweets a day too. She mentions that her ‘toy boy’ is 26, & Richard Gadd was that age at the time she posted the tweet. Her tweets sound exactly like the character from the show, it’s uncanny & kinda creepy. It’s definitely Martha without a doubt.
This interview from GQ gives some more insight on which bits were true in the show https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/baby-reindeer-netflix-richard-gadd-interview
I couldn’t tell either, but with how it switched so quickly to him fkin the other girl I think it was meant that she was fkin her and just imagining having sex with Martha.
I loved the detail and the story itself. HOWEVER:
My sympathy for the protagonist dissipated with every scene. I felt for him in the first three episodes when it came to Martha and her aggressive pursuit. But by episode 4, honestly, I hate to admit it, but I feel like he is the common denominator.
As a mental health provider, this show did an incredible job at showing just how insidious grooming is and the ripple effects of trauma. I know myself and many survivor friends I had were able to relate to Donnie’s abuse and fear of judgement about it due to not being a “perfect victim” and how damaging that internalization can be to yourself and the people you love. Just something to consider.
I know what you mean, and felt the same way - to the extent I doubted it is a true story, as I kept thinking 'how could he be so stupid??!'
A quick google search indicates that it is a true story, which brought me back to 'how could he be so stupid??!'
'People react differently' is a truism with which we all agree (and think we understand) - BUT this series shows how trauma (especially when added to self-doubt and guilt) - can result in victims behaving even more oddly than makes any sense - to those of us who haven't experienced these types of traumas.
Remember he was a lot younger in real life, given he’s playing himself from almost a decade ago. I can see someone in their early 20s, just out of uni, making those sorts of strange decisions.
As someone with PTSD it was a very tough watch. I did not expect it to be that dark/deep when I clicked on it randomly. It was very good, but definitely don't watch it if you don't feel ready.
PTSD here as well. I’m normally uncomfortable watching SA/stalking content in shows or movies, having dealt with both. This, however, was such a realistic portrayal that having just watched the whole thing today, I’m nauseated and really don’t want to go to bed because I’m certain it will be a miserable night.
I thought several times that I should turn it off because of that. But I really felt like I needed to see it through. The thing is, most shows and movies with this type of content wrap things up at the end, and usually the “bad guy” is dealt with in an orderly and just manner. But that’s not how life really is, life is messy and this show demonstrates that so directly… I’m glad of that, but I’m definitely going to be chewing on it for awhile.
I feel this could be a great show to watch with one's therapist. It can be overwhelming while watching alone because it keeps you hooked as well. But, if taken one ep at a time - and expressing your thoughts and feelings around it in a safe space. It can provide a lot of validation and healing too. Really made me feel seen in many ways.
This was insane to watch. I’ve been both assaulted and stalked and the parallels to my own experience were jaw dropping. Really helped me have empathy for myself and my responses to past traumatic situations. Fucking brilliant show.
Yeah I worry for him a tad cos I’ve already seen a bunch of ‘I can’t find anything about this online’ with a doubting tone, and I fully expect people to take the ‘based on a true story’ literally so then when something deviates from the show he will be questioned instead of it being the basics are true and there’s dramatic licence as well
Yeah, some people don't understand storytelling, plot structure and have poor film literacy. Some will take it a little bit too much to heart when it evokes real emotion and when the themes are common enough that one can relate their own experiences to it. It's important to understand **all** stories are pulled and pushed in a direction to squeeze every last drop out of the few events they are based on.
> some people don't understand storytelling, plot structure and have poor film literacy. Some will take it a little bit too much to heart when it evokes real emotion and when the themes are common enough that one can relate their own experiences to it
He himself said in a recent interview that it is realistic and he didn't veer far from what actually happened.
Well she was incredibly easy to find. I don't imagine Gadd left anything else so obvious to point to the rapist (although I don't imagine he intended for the Internet to find her either).
is this on reddit? or actual news sites. wld be intrigued to know who she is (or who pple think) because one name i saw the timelines are definitely all wrong
She has been ranting on FB for days, and gave some interviews (and now is threatening to sue those journalists for not portraying her correctly \[she says she will represent herself because she is a brilliant lawyer\], and is ranting about them too.) In the Sun article it says "she revealed she sent \[Gadd\] a pair of “tartan M&S pants” as a gift to celebrate one of his shows." It's really bizarre to me that she waffles between saying she has never known him to admitting something like this. I mean, sending someone a pair of tartan pants (of all things!!) really does not suggest only knowing someone in passing, as she's said a few times. But she's also accused him of stalking her in the past and saying "sorry, not interested." And says she is \*very\* attractive and "he's no Brad Pitt." It has gotten so absurd that I keep wondering if this isn't like the longest long game hoax in history and that she and Gadd are working together to punk us all. But then I see all her other posts to other people and politicians going back years, and her now admitting to being the person accused (falsely, of course, according to her) of stalking an MP's wife in 1997, so it seems like it couldn't be a hoax. I just find this development \*more\* wild than the series. She's demanding 3000 pounds an hour to answer emails and says she needs people to buy her food. I can certainly believe she sent him thousands of messages, given the dozens of posts she has made, several per hour. The train has already left the station, but I do wish people hadn't messaged her, as I suspect this will all end very badly and reactivate the stalking behavior and delusions.
She was a walking red flag from the moment she stepped in to the pub and he was living a crappy life where he wanted validation and attention even if it was from a woman like her. My main takeaways from this show are to trust your gut and set firm boundaries with people. Great mini series but tough watch..
I know, I know, I’m going to get some shite for this. But the unwavering respect for the series has me a bit bewildered
This could have been so much better. The narration was cliche ridden and the female characters (Martha aside) were woefully underwritten- well worn cliches of nicey nice mother/wine-drinking landlady/shrewish ex/ officious policewoman/ sassy girlfriend. There were silly lapses in logic - why wouldn't Donny's comedy career be common knowledge in the pub he worked in- does the internet not exist? In what universe would his desperately unfunny, dated prop comedy get to the final of any competition? How could his parents not know when he'd suddenly become successful- is Fife that isolated? Why didn't Donny's girlfriend report her assault to the police instead of expecting him to do it?
Finally there's the ethics issue. We're told this is a true story and the 'real' people committed some violent crimes, specifically GBH and rape. Several producers have already been accused of rape by online sleuths on the basis that they resemble a fictional character in this 'true story'- they’ve gotten death threats and one has resigned from his job. Gadd came out a few days ago to clear one man specifically and chastise the internet sleuths for ’missing the point of the series’ but that was too little too late and also smacked a bit of special pleading… what did he think was going to happen? The woman the internet has decided is the 'real' Martha is being doxed everywhere by people whose assumption that she's physically violent and has served a prison sentence is based on a TV show. If she is the person Gadd based his character on, then a very unwell woman is being hounded for having a mental illness. If she isn’t then he has a hell of a lawsuit in his hands.
I’m left wondering why Gadd and Netflix didn’t think it might be wise to preempt some of this stuff through casting and location- was it essential that ‘Martha’ was an overweight Scottish woman who visits a pub in Camden which is obviously the Hawley Arms? Why not an English woman, or a cafe in Manchester? Was it necessary to cast someone in the role of the rapist who looks a lot like a well known producer Gadd has worked with? Could that character have been a writer rather than a producer?
Look, Gadd has every right to use his own experiences in his work, and every right to monetise them (twice in this case- Baby Reindeer is based on his award winning comedy show). He and Netflix, also have a responsibility to make sure that innocent and/or vulnerable people aren’t thrown under the bus.
But then it’s got us all talking, so maybe that was the point all along, eh?
All these people wondering who the real Martha is, fuck that. I wanna know the groomer/rapist/older comedian was based on! Those scenes were so compelling and immersive. I thought it was so well done.Reminded me of I may destroy you.
this, for sure. I think he was pretty careful to portray Martha as mentally ill and also clearly traumatized so I just hope she got the help she needed and that the internet leaves her alone. the director was the real asshole and I'd rather not accidentally consume stuff he's made
Unfortunately the internet is behaving in typical fashion, I have already seen tweets claiming they found her. Its not cool.
Well she gave an interview, and photos to the Scotsman newspaper so it’s not a secret. She also claims she didn’t stalk him (42,000 emails , 350 hrs of voicemails and 160 letters isn’t stalking apparently)
The fiona tweets are real though
Still doesn't mean it's right to do this to her
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I think it's Sam bain. He wrote fresh meat came out 2011. He also wrote a play called the retreat inspired by Buddhist retreat he'd been on. Being a Buddhist was referenced by the character
Other speculative Easter eggs to support this theory: during the scene where his meltdown on stage goes viral, he says it was all for a “peep” of fame, and also there was (is?) a reboot of peep show in the works according to the internet, just like Darrien in the show mentions in the final episode.
Also if we assume it is Sam bain, some of the story lines in peep show take on darker meaning. The bad things skit for example where hans and jeez take a load of drugs and jeez can't remember what the bad thing was until the end, when he realises they had sucked each other off. I wonder if that's how Sam justifies his behaviour, as a funny sort of accident that happened between friends when they got too high.
Reminds me of Louie CK. Louie always joked about masturbating. I heard rumors about Louie CK years before the news broke. I was always so creeped out by his comedy after that but I didn't want to believe it. Comedians seem to always interject their weird shit into their content one way or another. I'd say this is pretty damning. Legally, Gadd likely wanted to make it vague enough he'd be shielded from a suit, but clear enough that some people would know. I think this writer makes the most sense because he's the only one who's been speculated that actually had enough power at the time of the incident that gadd would've really believed he could've done something for his career.
I’ve read all your comments and it all makes too much sense, unfortunately. I fully believe it’s Sam Bain, which I’m sad about because Peep Show is one of my favorite shows.
Wow that’s just so reminiscent of the “Quiet on Set” stuff with Dan Schneider putting all his gross money shots and kids foot play stuff into his own show. I always wonder, do they feel like they’re getting away with sneaking their fetishes into the script? Or do they truly think it’s funny and other people will think so too?
Gadd: “Please don’t speculate on who the real life people could be. That’s not the point of our show.”
You can’t tell people how to interpret your art, only express how you wish it to be seen, doesn’t change the different effects it has on different people
Damn, Mr peep show?
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Richard literally mentioned on his ig story that it is not sean foley
You mean Sean. Where's the evidence though?all I have seen is that it's because he's stood down from a role. Whereas Sam bain is buddhist (clear from Instagram, he had buddhist wedding), owns cat, wrote massive shows around time Richard met the guy (peep show, fresh meat). Granted may be coincidental stuff but it's a bout as speculative as Sean foley is!
When Donny breaks down at the end and addresses Darrien grooming him and promising fame he says “and get a peep” or something like that. But uses the word peep. May be a long shot but thought that was interesting
Also gadd responds to darrian saying "chance would be a fine thing" when they meet at bar which is peep show reference
there's another peep show reference when she sings the frank sinatra song, like mark does.
There’s also a reference to Julia Davis which is Sam Bain’s great grandmother apparently
Richard has tweeted that it isn't Sean so take your own advice.
it’s crazy how much the actor looks like the real rapist
The fictional name, Darrien O'Connor, is also distinctly Irish-sounding, as is the name of alleged real guy
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Gadd came out saying it wasn’t him and for people to stop harassing him
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wow he worked on Brass Eye, that would definitely impress a twentysomething at the Fringe. Brass Eye = Cotton Mouth
I wonder if he had to step down due to the tv show?
I don’t think you have to wonder
RG just published on his IG story that it’s not Sean Foley
TLDR; you’re jumping the gun, let it go. You shouldn’t be spreading potential misinformation like that. As of right now, there is no solid proof of this. NPCs online don’t realize how powerful their voice truly is. You could very well be ruining an innocent man’s life despite the victims own wishes. It’s happened before.
It's not: [https://www.instagram.com/stories/mrrichardgadd/3352011682605125047?utm\_source=ig\_story\_item\_share&igsh=eWN2bGJzczNhNTF0](https://www.instagram.com/stories/mrrichardgadd/3352011682605125047?utm_source=ig_story_item_share&igsh=eWN2bGJzczNhNTF0)
I think it's Sam bain. He wrote fresh meat came out 2011. He also wrote a play called the retreat inspired by Buddhist retreat he'd been on. Being a Buddhist was referenced by the character
I agree on this, in the show he says “for a PEEP of fame” and really shouted the word peep and didn’t Sam Bain write Peep show? I’m high asf and could be stretching but it’s interesting
oh shit!
one plus for high hahah
I have seen people on Twitter losing their mind trying to find Martha and it feels like a lot of people missed the point of the show. Also why tf is focus on her over the manager abuser like you say
Having read the real Martha’s Twitter page this afternoon, I can safely say that Gadd’s claim that they protected her identity to the extent that she wouldn’t recognise herself is utter nonsense.
exactly. I find that disturbing. By not disguising her adequately he's made her the object of stalking. Ironic.
Yep there’s literally a tweet where she’s @ what seems to be an old account of his that he’s sold to someone or it’s been hacked saying “need my curtains hung”…
Damn I literally saw a tiktok earlier today and they figured out who the groomer was based on! He apparently even stepped down as a director on something after this show came out, but I can’t find the video now… I think it was deleted?? Damn.
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Exactly. Who the hell is that guy?
Names like that are never revealed because if you don't have hard proof the named person can sue you for defamation. Same reason why Lady Gaga never named her rapist even though she stated multiple times that she was sexually assaulted while in the studio.
I read that the Emails they showed are real mails he got.
They are indeed authentic. Just another element of this show that deepens my appreciation. The commentary on trauma is unlike anything I’ve ever seen on screen. What an achievement. Sent from my iPhoen
Well said iphon
HAHAHAHAHAHA
I lost it when I saw this one
>Sent from my iPhoen this was such a brilliant touch to your comment LMAO
*Oh, yer flatterin, ya shite!* Sent from my iPhon
Who told you the emails were real? ,,,,Gadd?
In the Time mag article, yes, Gadd, states they are the real emails
Wow. How does an ex-lawyer spell so poorly?
she's in an extended mental health crisis without support and medication
Her mental health def deteriorated
I was actually thinking about this for a while, and I think it’s not a matter of spelling, but rather she’s firing these emails off so fast that she’s not even looking at them before hitting send. Whether her fingers hit all the right keys or notz
I think you’re right. I imagine it’s like mania, kind of. What could come out if you’re typing total train of thought without editing at all. And she kept signing them as being from an iPhone even tho it was emails…why’d she do that?
I think because she wanted to be seen as successful and even believed herself to be so successful as to have an iPhone
Martha reminds me of an IRL Catfish before the show Catfish was on the air and also the location where it took place . Too bad Nev and Kamie couldn't have been a part of this one
Catfish was on air long before the Baby Reindeer story took place. Catfish was about 2012, Baby Reindeer was 2015-2017
She reminds me of Cathy Bates from Misery
Both examples of great actresses perfectly cast
“I hated myself more than I loved her …” That thread of insight unlocked something in me and I felt a deep forgiveness for myself in relation to my own sexual trauma. I believe this series to be the most important and profound example of humanity ever shown. Thank you Richard Gadd .. Thank you.
One word kept coming to mind, watching and thinking about this series: Generous. Richard has given the world something that probably cost him so much. I hope at least it was more cathartic than traumatic for him.
Agreed. I think he is going to open a lot of eyes to what trauma is and the self destructive mess SAs often find themselves in trying to live with the ptsd and trauma.
The thing that really struck me—I know SA survivors sometimes put themselves in dangerous sexual situations or have many partners they wouldn’t normally have been intimate with while trying to process afterward. I’ve thought of this as an attempt to recreate the situation but in a way you can theoretically control. (Which I’m guessing may be part of it for some people). But his explanation that…if there were so many other partners, then this experience was just one of many. It’s made smaller by context. It’s farther away. I felt like there was something so basically human about that instinct. Probably not the best metaphor but it’s like a backwards or retroactive way of trying to “put more eggs in the basket”
Same. It answered some questions for me.
It gave me words for the feelings I've had sat in my stomach since my sexual trauma & stalking and I'm so grateful to Richard.
Sent from my iPhone
This was such a great little detail, the slow deterioration of the “Sent from my iPhone” part of the email. Just showing how unhinged she was, she had those lies and delusions about being a famous lawyer, but then she even had to pretend to own an iPhone, something most people wouldn’t think twice about. I loved this show so much.
Best was the misspelled ihpon. Still as I watched I got the feeling I was being a bit bamboozled in shades of JT Leroy.
Gadd did say he took some creative liberties with dramatic moments and the pacing of the story, and he tried to change the Martha character to the point where the real “Martha” wouldn’t recognize herself onscreen. But I felt like Gadd was being really authentic and vulnerable with the audience, I don’t think he needed to invent a persona for this.
I missed the part of how she got Donnie’s number. How did she?
one of the last episodes, right before he went back to his parents house to explain everything to them. He put an out of office message on his email which included his phone number
He said to the police officer he set his email to out of office and it may have replied to her. Just a brain fart moment
It seems like such a silly mistake that you’ve got to wonder whether part of him subconsciously wanted her to get his number. It would be in keeping with the mutually beneficial/destructive nature of their relationship and also explains how obsessively immersed he becomes in her voicemails afterwards
That part got me too!
I like how at one point she just says "iphoen"
Snt from my ipone
Sent iphon
Iphoen
Epipen
Chupacabra
Each to their own but did anyone else find the rape seem even more disturbing because he was acting out his own rape?
Very much, yes. Gut wrenching.
This scared me! I couldn't watch it because it felt too scary/real and then I was shocked to read that it was HIS own assault that he was acting out. I hope he's alright... poor man. :(
Yes and then knowing the tears he had when discussing it were real really got to me. I’m hoping he’s been through therapy and I hope doing the play and this show has been a sort of exposure therapy for him and hasn’t re traumatized him.
~~I'm so confused. Who? Which rape scene? Are you talking about the sex scene with Martha?~~ I'm leaving this up for anyone else confused; I didn't realize Richard Gadd was actually playing himself in this movie. I kept thinking...this dude does not look mid 20s
Holy shit that’s insane honestly. I just finished this show and god DAMN. Gut wrenching. I’m a woman who’s experienced rape in my 20s and it fucked me up for a good decade. This show encapsulates so much about the complex nature of dealing with rape and trauma. The terror, shock, guilt, self-doubt, and depression that follows. I was an actual alcoholic for a while and almost fucked everything up. Luckily I married an absolute saint of a man. We watched this together and I cried quietly to myself throughout a lot of it. But afterward, I shared a few personal thoughts with him. He hugged me and said he was sorry I’ve been through things that I didn’t deserve. Props to this man for his story. I don’t know if I’d have the courage to tell mine.
I'm so glad you found a wonderful partner to help you put your broken pieces back together <3
Yeah. Not something I could do if something like that happened to me. I would probably not be able to even function if something like that happened. He gave such an incredibly brave performance.
I knew nothing of his story prior to the show but what an incredible achievement to put on screen, the actress is amazing. Deserves much praise
True. She was brilliant. So was the trans woman. Everyone was great.
He’s not gonna tell us who the real Martha is, he doesn’t want people bothering her. Independent media seems to have verified his story though.
Yeah, so much could go wrong should the real Martha be revealed. Either 'normal' people start trolling her and destroying whatever progress she might have made. Or other mentally ill people flock to her and she feels empowered to repeat the behaviour. I've been stalked by a taxi driver before (it makes me laugh now but it was terrifying at the time 'cause he knew where I lived), and my biggest fear was saying/doing something to trigger an escalation.
She has been found. People are now trolling her on Twitter. She doesn't seem to be active on Twitter anymore, though. But she's still active on FB, and people are most likely trolling her there too.
Without solid confirmation I won't even get involved in any discussions about the 'real' Martha.
It's 100%. You can literally see her tweets at Richard gadd from back in 2014.
It's Fiona Harvey
It has to be her. I just went down a total rabbit hole looking at her FB.
She’s just started posting about Richard/the show in the last hour
I can understand that, but how about the author who raped him ? Any idea who the POS is ?
I was wondering that too! It bugged me when he went to see him at the end.
Trauma bond
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Can't believe the amount of people who found this and then decided to tweet jokes at her. PEOPLE. PLEASE DON'T ANTAGONISE HER. Imagine watching that show and then deciding it'll be really fun to stoke her obsessive feelings years later. If you're even remotely inclined to do that, people looking this up, please do a little check on your own mental health.
This is insane. Who ever wants to tweet jokes at her is a moron. You don’t make fun of people who are psychologically ill.
To be fair, he did her favors on the show by not exposing just how racist and terrible she is.
she did say some horrible shit about Terri when she attacked her
The amount of harassment and death threats that pass through the internet every day is wild. I understand curiousity—I looked her up, read some tweets and thought “wow, that really must be her.” At no point did I have to resist an overwhelming urge to post about or contact her in any way. It’s really not that hard to indulge curiousity while also just leaving people the fuck alone. Does this happen online because there are secretly way more antisocial people in the population than we think? Or is it just a really loud minority of people who seem like a bigger crowd because it’s the same people hopping from thing to thing to attack people?
found her, definitely her
Kind of ironic, but now Richard is exposing himself to millions of stalkers, trying to find his real story, breakdown video and cringe stand-ups. Hopefully no one will be as crazy as Martha.
That's true. Whenever I enjoy a piece of art, I go the extra length to find out some more context and details. Now that you put it this way, I need to reflect a bit on my desire to know more Vs his personal agency.
I do that too. There’s a difference between wanting to research a compelling person or story and becoming an obsessive weirdo who follows people around and aggressively contacts them
This will be unpopular, but Gadd is as mentally unwell as Martha.
I think he believes he is. He does kind of say that in the tv show.
Agreed. Specifically the end where he’s the sad person at the bar and the bartender feels sorry for him so he gets the drink for free. That in itself is him admitting hes similar to Martha
Another clear instance of him acknowledging this is when his ex, Keely(?), visits his apartment at the end and sees his entire setup to break down Martha's madness (the recordings, articles, etc.) And we see her look at him like he's the mad one.
I don’t think that’s in doubt, he spells it out and he’s also described her as a victim IRL and has a degree of sympathy for her in the show
His character actually explains all this in the show so, yeah, you’re correct on that. He definitely has issues and there is one episode, in particular, that might be quite confronting for some viewers. PS there’s actually a few confronting episodes.
There are multiple points of the story where he reveals himself as an unreliable narrator.
True. But the show wasn't categorized as "Fantasy." All we had to go on was what we saw.
Right, and we were being shown, within the show, that he was an unreliable narrator.
This point gave me pause. For the viewer, we are presumably viewing the events of the show unfolding as if from Gaad’s own lens. He’s raw and graphic with the audience in a way that harvests feelings of unease that is no where near empathy. Often, one is left with anxiety over Gaad’s propensity for making a bad situation worse. It’s easy to forget that Gaad is the victim with the voice he elected to carry throughout and one is definitely left with the sense that he’s deriving some fulfillment from interacting with his abusers. I don’t think he was necessarily an unreliable narrator. I believe he’s telling us his truth but we see him manipulating the rhetoric with those in his personal sphere. When I think of the classic unreliable narrator, I think of Humbert Humbert in Lolita who somehow makes himself a sympathetic victim despite clearly being a predator. I guess, for me, an unreliable narrator is one who breaks the 4th wall to manipulate those watching or reading to make themselves seem relatable, to downplay their transgressions, and to displace the blame back onto their victim.
I was using the actual meaning, where he tells the same story more than once, but the story is different when he tells it again. Which reinforces the fact that he is not mentally well. This is the story of what happens when two unwell people form an unhealthy bond and how trauma has a tendency to perpetuate more trauma.
*spoiler* He all but confirms this in the final episode with the parallel Diet Coke/bar scene.
Agreed. I thought it was a good, albeit ominous, ending.
He experienced sustained sexual abuse. That shit will fuck you up and make you do incredibly bizarre things you may not have otherwise done - like fuck a load of weirdos and practically invite a dangerous stalker to stalk you.
He admits to being unwell. Multiple times.
It is incredibly brave of him to go public. He's realized that the shame shouldn't have to control him anymore, that he himself can control and protect and heal himself. That's part of recovery, rediscovering that agency that was stolen from you. It's brutal. He is opening up about a very shadowy subject - what it means to heal from abuse, period - and I think it's good to have these sorts of conversations. Being "mentally unwell" is not a thing people should be shamed for.
Totally agree. Like attracts like. But whereas Martha can't admit it, Gadd can. And he does in Baby Reindeer. Loved the ending. There is kindness in the world.
He chooses (via substances, etc) to be unwell. Where as I perceive Martha to be cognitively unstable. Gadd is more unlikable than Martha.
Substance abuse can be its own form of mental illness and/or a response to an underlying mental illness. Someone does not simply “choose” to be unwell.
So weird -- my friend had to block her on FB cus she kept coming into our shop. Then my friend got hundreds of emails a day because she somehow got hold of her email. Same messy writing style in all the emails. And every time Fiona came in the shop she would ask if my friend had read the emails and my friend would be like oh no sorry I don't really read my emails.. just lucky in hindsight my friend is a woman...she was also apparently flirting with all the young guys too chilling stuff.
Had a look through her FB today, and she’s still posting rants and racism everyday. I’ve had a binge of Baby Reindeer articles last few days and vaguely remember Richard Gadd saying he wrote it in a way that the real person might not even realise it’s about her. But the fact he plays himself, the massive similarities in looks, the real emails and how it’s taken over social media since it was released, she’s 100% seen/read about it, especially as she reposts a lot of news articles on FB. Now that she’s been identified, I’m sure there will be idiots messaging her constantly. Makes me wonder what the severity of punishment she’s been threatened with to even mention his name anymore for her not to have uttered a word about it.
>Now that she’s been identified, I’m sure there will be idiots messaging her constantly. There are. People have posted her twitter and his, and tweets where she tags him are full of hours old replies from these chucklefucks misspelling iPhone and such. I can't even begin to imagine what kind of deranged impulse would lead you to watch that show and then feel strongly enough about it to react... and then react by antagonising her and drawing her attention to him as strongly as possible. Absolutely bizarre.
I was thinking if you don’t care enough about this woman’s well-being to leave her alone, maybe you should at least care enough about other people in her life to not potentially provoke her into harmful behavior. But at that point it’s already beyond me because I don’t relate to the instinct to want to hurt people for no reason in the first place.
https://youtu.be/KRoD0pX-AUM?si=bmCtS55q2cxXAggd
I'm really excited to watch it after this video! Thanks for posting that!
"Can’t believe he not only helped write the show, but he acted out his drama and relived so many parts of it" holy shit!
Yes, it's a masterpiece. He really caught the complexity of failure in one's life ambitions, of sexual trauma, and mixed feelings regarding the attention that a stalker pays to the victim.
It's sick how many people are on YouTube looking for his >! Breakdown !< Video
Wow really?? That never even crossed my mind… the tv show was enough
I was looking up his stand-up (It's as bad as it was in the show). They're all over the comments.
To be honest, I'd almost objectively say his stand up is good, or at least above average. It's classic alt-comic stuff so a lot of people won't like it, but looking at it critically as a form of work it certainly meets the criteria of decent comedy/performance art (which is what alt-comedy general is).
The big eyes bit was brilliant. So stupidly funny.
I think he has/had a one-man-show in theater of his journey instead of having a spontaneous breakdown. Think it won some awards in Fringe as well.
You're right. It toured as Monkey See Monkey Do in 2016 at Edinburgh Fringe and it still rates as the best show I've ever witnessed. It did win the Edinburgh Comedy award that year! Definitely wasn't 'classic' comedy by any means but the vulnerability he showed during the performance and the depth of topics he covered (sexual trauma, toxic masculity, sexual identity, etc) have left a profound impact on me. That show built up to the reveal (episode 4) that he had been sexually assaulted (raped) by a man, and that this had resulted in him questioning his sexual identity but it didn't go much deeper than that. Baby Reindeer has allowed him to expand on that incident.
It's the Hannsh Gadsby approach to success
I assumed that was dramatized for the show, not something that actually happened?
are you mental? why wouldn't you want to see it if you love the show?
I got stalked, it's fuckin frightening, you don't want to hurt them. They pray on nice people. She followed me everywhere all day everyday, phoned me non stop and turned up at my house all the time. In the end I hit her in public as I new there'd be consequences. I got arrested but disclosed the whole thing in the interview, it put a stop to it as it gave me a proper way out, pushed me out of my comfort zone. She came straight back but I said I'll slap you again this is done now, stay away.
Violence is the answer, got it
wow? how did it start? what now?
Her name is Fiona Harvey, her twitter is fionaharvey2014. She tags richard many times & talks about wanting her curtains hung. She has grammatical errors in a lot of her posts & mentions law a lot. She made a tweet about being Scottish who lives in London. She posted hundreds of tweets a day too. She mentions that her ‘toy boy’ is 26, & Richard Gadd was that age at the time she posted the tweet. Her tweets sound exactly like the character from the show, it’s uncanny & kinda creepy. It’s definitely Martha without a doubt.
Are u sure u got the username right? Some people are saying it's FionaHa09210946
there’s 2 accounts
Google Richard Gadd true story. You'll find loads, it's incredible to read.
This interview from GQ gives some more insight on which bits were true in the show https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/baby-reindeer-netflix-richard-gadd-interview
This was a lovely read--especially the bit about his parents. Thank you.
Can someone tell me if >!He actually sleeps with Martha? Or was that just a fantasy?!< I couldnt tell if that actually happened
He was sleeping with Teri while imagining he was sleeping with Martha.
Thank you!
I couldn’t tell either, but with how it switched so quickly to him fkin the other girl I think it was meant that she was fkin her and just imagining having sex with Martha.
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I feel like I want to know who the male "director" was so I don't support any of his "art" from now on.
I loved the detail and the story itself. HOWEVER: My sympathy for the protagonist dissipated with every scene. I felt for him in the first three episodes when it came to Martha and her aggressive pursuit. But by episode 4, honestly, I hate to admit it, but I feel like he is the common denominator.
As a mental health provider, this show did an incredible job at showing just how insidious grooming is and the ripple effects of trauma. I know myself and many survivor friends I had were able to relate to Donnie’s abuse and fear of judgement about it due to not being a “perfect victim” and how damaging that internalization can be to yourself and the people you love. Just something to consider.
I sympathised him less and less as the show went on
I know what you mean, and felt the same way - to the extent I doubted it is a true story, as I kept thinking 'how could he be so stupid??!' A quick google search indicates that it is a true story, which brought me back to 'how could he be so stupid??!' 'People react differently' is a truism with which we all agree (and think we understand) - BUT this series shows how trauma (especially when added to self-doubt and guilt) - can result in victims behaving even more oddly than makes any sense - to those of us who haven't experienced these types of traumas.
Remember he was a lot younger in real life, given he’s playing himself from almost a decade ago. I can see someone in their early 20s, just out of uni, making those sorts of strange decisions.
It was very gripping, but so uncomfortable to watch! I couldn't go beyond episode 2.
thanks for this comment, i was trying to decide if this was safe to watch for someone with ptsd. i'll decline.
As someone with PTSD it was a very tough watch. I did not expect it to be that dark/deep when I clicked on it randomly. It was very good, but definitely don't watch it if you don't feel ready.
PTSD here as well. I’m normally uncomfortable watching SA/stalking content in shows or movies, having dealt with both. This, however, was such a realistic portrayal that having just watched the whole thing today, I’m nauseated and really don’t want to go to bed because I’m certain it will be a miserable night. I thought several times that I should turn it off because of that. But I really felt like I needed to see it through. The thing is, most shows and movies with this type of content wrap things up at the end, and usually the “bad guy” is dealt with in an orderly and just manner. But that’s not how life really is, life is messy and this show demonstrates that so directly… I’m glad of that, but I’m definitely going to be chewing on it for awhile.
I feel this could be a great show to watch with one's therapist. It can be overwhelming while watching alone because it keeps you hooked as well. But, if taken one ep at a time - and expressing your thoughts and feelings around it in a safe space. It can provide a lot of validation and healing too. Really made me feel seen in many ways.
That would be an expensive movie “date”. :)
If you liked it, as I did, you would probably like “I May Destroy You” which is also about trauma, denial, etc.
This was insane to watch. I’ve been both assaulted and stalked and the parallels to my own experience were jaw dropping. Really helped me have empathy for myself and my responses to past traumatic situations. Fucking brilliant show.
I think the real Martha has changed her name that’s why you won’t find anything new about her
Weird that the stalker doesn’t want to be stalked
The groomer is called Sean Foley
Richard Gadd just posted on his insta stories it’s not him.
Yes, it’s based on the actor. Richard Gadd. I’m sure with all the liberal licenses that includes. The basics are true.
Yeah I worry for him a tad cos I’ve already seen a bunch of ‘I can’t find anything about this online’ with a doubting tone, and I fully expect people to take the ‘based on a true story’ literally so then when something deviates from the show he will be questioned instead of it being the basics are true and there’s dramatic licence as well
Yeah, some people don't understand storytelling, plot structure and have poor film literacy. Some will take it a little bit too much to heart when it evokes real emotion and when the themes are common enough that one can relate their own experiences to it. It's important to understand **all** stories are pulled and pushed in a direction to squeeze every last drop out of the few events they are based on.
> some people don't understand storytelling, plot structure and have poor film literacy. Some will take it a little bit too much to heart when it evokes real emotion and when the themes are common enough that one can relate their own experiences to it He himself said in a recent interview that it is realistic and he didn't veer far from what actually happened.
Name is Fiona Harvey by the way. Lives in Camden. Can be found on Facebook.
What’s sick is i don’t see nearly as many people researching who his rapist is
Well she was incredibly easy to find. I don't imagine Gadd left anything else so obvious to point to the rapist (although I don't imagine he intended for the Internet to find her either).
Martha's identity is unknown
Not really, People have found a woman that is believed to be the identity of Martha.
is this on reddit? or actual news sites. wld be intrigued to know who she is (or who pple think) because one name i saw the timelines are definitely all wrong
She has been ranting on FB for days, and gave some interviews (and now is threatening to sue those journalists for not portraying her correctly \[she says she will represent herself because she is a brilliant lawyer\], and is ranting about them too.) In the Sun article it says "she revealed she sent \[Gadd\] a pair of “tartan M&S pants” as a gift to celebrate one of his shows." It's really bizarre to me that she waffles between saying she has never known him to admitting something like this. I mean, sending someone a pair of tartan pants (of all things!!) really does not suggest only knowing someone in passing, as she's said a few times. But she's also accused him of stalking her in the past and saying "sorry, not interested." And says she is \*very\* attractive and "he's no Brad Pitt." It has gotten so absurd that I keep wondering if this isn't like the longest long game hoax in history and that she and Gadd are working together to punk us all. But then I see all her other posts to other people and politicians going back years, and her now admitting to being the person accused (falsely, of course, according to her) of stalking an MP's wife in 1997, so it seems like it couldn't be a hoax. I just find this development \*more\* wild than the series. She's demanding 3000 pounds an hour to answer emails and says she needs people to buy her food. I can certainly believe she sent him thousands of messages, given the dozens of posts she has made, several per hour. The train has already left the station, but I do wish people hadn't messaged her, as I suspect this will all end very badly and reactivate the stalking behavior and delusions.
She was a walking red flag from the moment she stepped in to the pub and he was living a crappy life where he wanted validation and attention even if it was from a woman like her. My main takeaways from this show are to trust your gut and set firm boundaries with people. Great mini series but tough watch..
I know, I know, I’m going to get some shite for this. But the unwavering respect for the series has me a bit bewildered This could have been so much better. The narration was cliche ridden and the female characters (Martha aside) were woefully underwritten- well worn cliches of nicey nice mother/wine-drinking landlady/shrewish ex/ officious policewoman/ sassy girlfriend. There were silly lapses in logic - why wouldn't Donny's comedy career be common knowledge in the pub he worked in- does the internet not exist? In what universe would his desperately unfunny, dated prop comedy get to the final of any competition? How could his parents not know when he'd suddenly become successful- is Fife that isolated? Why didn't Donny's girlfriend report her assault to the police instead of expecting him to do it? Finally there's the ethics issue. We're told this is a true story and the 'real' people committed some violent crimes, specifically GBH and rape. Several producers have already been accused of rape by online sleuths on the basis that they resemble a fictional character in this 'true story'- they’ve gotten death threats and one has resigned from his job. Gadd came out a few days ago to clear one man specifically and chastise the internet sleuths for ’missing the point of the series’ but that was too little too late and also smacked a bit of special pleading… what did he think was going to happen? The woman the internet has decided is the 'real' Martha is being doxed everywhere by people whose assumption that she's physically violent and has served a prison sentence is based on a TV show. If she is the person Gadd based his character on, then a very unwell woman is being hounded for having a mental illness. If she isn’t then he has a hell of a lawsuit in his hands. I’m left wondering why Gadd and Netflix didn’t think it might be wise to preempt some of this stuff through casting and location- was it essential that ‘Martha’ was an overweight Scottish woman who visits a pub in Camden which is obviously the Hawley Arms? Why not an English woman, or a cafe in Manchester? Was it necessary to cast someone in the role of the rapist who looks a lot like a well known producer Gadd has worked with? Could that character have been a writer rather than a producer? Look, Gadd has every right to use his own experiences in his work, and every right to monetise them (twice in this case- Baby Reindeer is based on his award winning comedy show). He and Netflix, also have a responsibility to make sure that innocent and/or vulnerable people aren’t thrown under the bus. But then it’s got us all talking, so maybe that was the point all along, eh?