Baby Reindeer: Scottish performer Richard Gadd's new series release date and is it a true story?

An Fife actor, writer and comedian is responsible for one of the most anticipated television series of 2024 so far.

Richard Gadd stars in new Netflix series Baby Reindeer.

Written by and starring Scotland’s multi award-winning Richard Gadd, Baby Reindeer is about to hit television screens and, judging by his previous work, it could be one of the best shows of the year.

Based on a one-man theatre show, it promises “an exhilarating blend of darkness and humour, drawing inspiration from the unpredictable twists of real-life events.”

Here’s everything you need to know.

Who is Richard Gadd?

Born in the tiny village of Wormit, in Fife, Richard Gadd brought his first three standup comedy shows - Waiting for Gaddot, Breaking Gadd and Cheese & Crack Whores to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe - to critical acclaim. All of them transferred to runs at London’s Soho Theatre and won several awards including an Amused Moose Comedy Award and a Scottish Comedy Award for Best Solo Show.

His fourth show Monkey See Monkey Do won the Edinburgh Comedy Award in 2016 and was one of the best reviewed of the entire festival, latterly touring UK, Europe and Australia.

His first theatre show Baby Reindeer, on which his new Netflix series is based, came to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2019 and was one of the hottest tickets of the year.

His acting credits include BAFTA-nominated BBC2 drama Against the Law, BBC3's Clique, Sky Arts’ One Normal Night, Sky One's Code 404 and E4's Tripped.

Writing credits include Netflix's Sex Education, Dave’s Ultimate Worrier, and Channel 4’s The Last Leg.

How was the stage version of Baby Reindeer received?

At the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2019 Baby Reindeer won two awards - a Scotsman Fringe First Award and a Stage Award for Acting Excellence. It’s subsequent run at London’s Bush Theatre won an Off West End Theatre Award for Best Video Design and a prestigious Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Affiliate Theatre. It received near-universal praise from critics, who awarded it a slew of five star reviews.

What's Baby Reindeer about?

According to Netflix, the story of Baby Reindeer centers on struggling comedian Donny Dunn’s strange and layered relationship with a woman named Martha, whose initially friendly demeanor unravels as she begins to stalk Donny relentlessly. 

Their first interaction is innocent enough: While working his shift as a bartender, Donny shows an act of kindness to Martha, a customer whose vulnerability is readily apparent. But, as the saying goes, “no good deed goes unpunished,” and this casual encounter sparks a suffocating obsession that threatens to wreck both their lives and forces Donny to face his deeply buried trauma.

What begins as a simple act of kindness soon spirals into a chilling tale of obsession and psychological turmoil, pushing Donny to confront his deepest fears and darkest secrets.

In crafting this gripping narrative, Gadd aimed to shatter stereotypes and present stalking in its raw, human form.

Unlike typical portrayals, Baby Reindeer delves into the complexities of mental illness, offering a nuanced exploration of the blurred lines between victim and perpetrator.

Is Baby Reindeer based on a true story?

The basis for the story for Baby Reindeer comes from Richard Gadd’s own experiences of a stalker, which resulted in him receiving hours of voice messages and more than 40,000 emails from an obsessed fan. The name of the series comes from what the fan nicknamed Gadd. In the stage play Gadd played himself, while in the television series he plays a thinly-fictionalised version of himself.

Taking about the televison series to Netflix, Gadd said: “Stalking on television tends to be very sexed-up. It has a mystique. It’s somebody in a dark alley way. It’s somebody who’s really sexy, who’s very normal, but then they go strange bit by bit.

“But stalking is a mental illness. I really wanted to show the layers of stalking with a human quality I hadn’t seen on television before. It’s a stalker story turned on its head. It takes a trope and turns it on its head.”

He added: “In a weird way, I first started feeling like this could be a good story during the whole ordeal itself. It was one of the most intense periods, when I was listening to these voicemails. I’d go to sleep at night and these voicemails - her words would bounce around my eyelids. I remember thinking, ‘God, if I was ever to speak about this onstage, I’d fire the words around. Put the voicemails in a big cacophony and fire it.’”

How many episodes of Baby Reindeer are there?

There are seven episodes of Baby Reindeer in the limited series.

When can I watch Baby Reindeer?

All seven episodes of the comedy drama will drop on Netflix on Thursday, April 11. Netflix is available from £4.99 per month (for a single person with adverts).

What’s the cast of Baby Reindeer?

The cast of Baby Reindeer are as follows:

• Richard Gadd plays Donny Dunn (a Scottish standup comedian and performer)
• Jessica Gunning plays Martha (Donny Dunn’s stalker)
• Nava Mau plays Teri (a trans woman whose path intertwines with Donny's)
• Tom Goodman-Hill plays Darrien (a pivotal figure in Donny's journey)