Baby Reindeer star carried out extreme transformation before filming Netflix series

Baby Reindeer is the series on everyone's lips right now, with the drama-thriller causing waves on the streaming platform since its release on 11 April.

The Netflix autobiographical adaptation has piqued the interest of those looking for an intriguing, bingeable TV series, as the show explores several themes that the main actor actually went through.

The thriller series follows a Scottish stand-up comedian as he is disturbingly stalked for years on end, which is chillingly based on the real-life experiences of the actor playing the role, 34-year-old Richard Gadd.

In the show, he is known as Donny Dunn, and Baby Reindeer is the name of Gadd's stand-up tour based on the experience. It was the nickname given to him by his stalker, known as Martha and portrayed by Jessica Gunning in the hit-show.

Several people binged all seven episodes of the series within days of its release and it has been received well, to say the least, boasting a score of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Gadd met his stalker in a bar that he worked at, when he offered an upset stranger a cup of tea, with this act of kindness spiralling into being followed home and at work, as well as being tracked on social media with several fake accounts.

He previously revealed to The Times that people at the pub thought it was 'funny' at first, but after getting thousands of voicemails and emails, the fan developed an obsession, even showing up at gigs.

Richard Gadd had to lose weight to have the same look he had when he was being stalked. (Netflix)

Unfortunately, it took the police six years to take Gadd's complaints about 'Martha' seriously, in which him and his relatives had to endure the agony, as the police said they could only intervene if she got physical.

The comedian still has issues with trust, and is still undergoing therapy because of the ordeal.

Gadd revealed that the years of being stalked gave him something 'like PTSD', and to reflect this, he lost weight to match the weight he had as his 'neurotic' self at the peak of his stalking episode, dropping to 10-and-a-half stone (66.6kg) for the Netflix role.

Revealing that he is single right now, he highlighted that he is 'more cautious' of forming relationships with people because of the horror he had to endure with Martha. He explained: "It takes me a long time to trust them. Before, I entered situations with such abandonment and I got burnt."

He said that his experience his Martha has altered how he looks at relationships today. (Netflix)

But having a stand-up show about the situation has allowed him to take ownership of the trauma, even winning a Fringe award for his Baby Reindeer show in 2019.

Back then, he touched on the traumatic ordeal to The Telegraph: "It was debilitating beyond belief.

"I'd listen to her voicemails and just feel my eyes welling up. They were tears of frustration. Proper brain-heavy stress."

He also said that his stalker drove a 'freight train' through his ability to have relationships in a normal and functional life.

If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence, contact The Survivors Trust for free on 08088 010 818, available 10am-12.30pm, 1.30pm-3pm and 6pm-8pm Monday to Thursday, 10am-12.30pm and 1.30pm-3pm on Fridays, 10am-12.30pm on Saturdays and 6pm-8pm on Sundays.

Topics: Netflix, TV, TV and Film

Joshua Nair

Joshua Nair is a journalist at LADbible. Born in Malaysia and raised in Dubai, he has always been interested in writing about a range of subjects, from sports to trending pop culture news. After graduating from Oxford Brookes University with a BA in Media, Journalism and Publishing, he got a job freelance writing for SPORTbible while working in marketing before landing a full-time role at LADbible. Unfortunately, he's unhealthily obsessed with Manchester United, which takes its toll on his mental and physical health. Daily.

@joshnair10