Baby Reindeer: Judge rules series not a 'true story' and approves $170m lawsuit against Netflix

Baby Reindeer won an impressive six Emmy Awards in the US earlier this month. Credit: AP

By Natasha Dangoor, ITV News Producer

A US judge ruled on Friday that Fiona Harvey, the woman claiming to be the inspiration for the character Martha in Richard Gadd’s hit TV series Baby Reindeer, can pursue her $170 million (£133 million) defamation lawsuit against Netflix.

District judge Gary Klausner concluded in his ruling that the show was not a "true story" and that Netflix "made no effort to investigate" the accuracy of the facts presented in the show, nor did they take measures to hide Harvey's identity.

It follows Harvey's claim to be the person the character Martha Scott is based on, who stalks Gadd’s character Donny Dunn after he serves her a free cup of tea in the pub where he works.

The series, set in 2015, follows Donny, a struggling Scottish comedian trying to advance his comedy career while working as a bartender and dealing with his stalker.

Harvey has accused Netflix of defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence, gross negligence, and violations of her right of publicity in the lawsuit filed at the Californian federal court.

She alleged that the streaming platform spread “brutal lies”, claiming the show falsely implied that she sexually assaulted Gadd and gouged his eyes, and that she is a “twice convicted stalker who was sentenced to five years in prison”.

Richard Gadd stars as Donny, a character based on himself in hit Netflix series Baby Reindeer Credit: Netflix

Other accusations made in the show - and which Harvey denies - include stalking a police officer, violently attacking Gadd in a pub by smashing a glass bottle over his head and stalking him by waiting outside his home for up to 16 hours each day.

Klausner noted that because each episode of the show begins with the line “This is a true story”, this invites the audience "to accept the statements as fact".

But while Harvey's “purported actions are reprehensible”, according to the judge, Martha's actions in the show are "of a worse degree" than what Harvey is accused of in reality.

Subscribe free to our weekly newsletter for exclusive and original coverage from ITV News. Direct to your inbox every Friday morning.

“There is a major difference between stalking and being convicted of stalking in a court of law,” he wrote.

“Likewise, there are major differences between inappropriate touching and sexual assault, as well as between shoving and gouging another’s eyes.

"While plaintiff’s purported actions are reprehensible, defendants’ statements are of a worse degree and could produce a different effect in the mind of a viewer.”

In the drama, the stalking begins with Gadd offering Martha a drink on the house at the pub where he worked Credit: Netflix

The show is said to reflect the real-life experiences of comedian and writer Gadd, who alleged that Harvey stalked him, sexually assaulted him and sent him thousands of inappropriate emails and voicemail messages.

A statement from Netflix previously said: “We intend to defend this matter vigorously and to stand by Richard Gadd’s right to tell his story.”

While Gadd alleged that "the similarities between [the fictional] Martha and the Plaintiff [Harvey] are so broad that a reasonable person would not have been able to identify her," the court said that they "have specific similarities that few others could claim to share".

Gadd had asked viewers not to speculate over the real people who inspired the series, however Harvey's identity was quickly found online.

As the flurry of speculation and interest in the the real-life counterparts of the show's characters intensified, Piers Morgan interviewed the woman claiming to be the real-life Martha Scott.

Morgan's sitdown with Harvey has been viewed more than 11 million times and has been met with significant backlash.

Piers Morgan and Fiona Harvey before appearing on Morgan's Uncensored show Credit: X via Piers Morgan

Despite giving Harvey a platform, Morgan says she has been let down by Netflix, telling ITV's Lorraine: “I think they failed in their duty of care to Fiona Harvey, Netflix in particular.

“When you watch the series, it’s gripping television. Richard Gadd, I saw him on your show here and he has done an amazing job of telling this story, but the key question after watching the series and watching my interview is - is it actually a true story?

"And the key part of that is did she actually go to prison? Is she a convicted stalker? As I sit here Lorraine, there is no actual evidence so far that she has ever even been in court.”

Harvey said she had been "forced" into telling her side of the story after receiving death threats from "internet sleuths" following the release of the show.

In April, when it launched, Baby Reindeer became the most-streamed title in the UK with 68 million views, according to YouGov data.

Listen to the ITV News entertainment podcast, Unscripted...