Richard Gadd’s Baby Reindeer premiered on Netflix on 11 April 2024 and has sparked deep debates and conversations amongst viewers. The new British dark comedy received critical acclaim and topped Netflix’s Weekly Top 10 TV Chart. The seven-episode miniseries was created based on the autobiographical one-man show of the same name written and performed by Richard Gadd. Baby Reindeer shines a light into the depths of Gadd’s soul exposing abuse, trauma and a spiral of unfiltered emotions experienced throughout the darkest period of his life.
Why it takes so long for Donny to report Martha to the police
In the first episode, Martha Scott (Jessica Gunning) is quickly introduced when she stumbles into the pub where Donny (Richard Gadd) works as a bartender. Donny serves Martha a cup of tea on the house because she cannot afford to pay for it. However, subsequent to this interaction, it is fairly obvious that Martha is growing increasingly fond of Donny and the latter arguably plays a part in escalating her infatuation.
In episode 1, Donny initially agrees to go for a picnic with Martha but later changes his mind and suggests the pair go for a coffee instead because according to Donny, picnics are what lovers do and the two of them are just friends. In the same episode, Donny makes the famous “I’ll hang your curtains” joke to quiet down the banter at the pub, however Martha interpreted it as a declaration of lust rather than the harmless joke it was meant to be.
During this initial phase of stalking, Donny almost never turns down any of the sexual flirtations Martha spews at him — he doesn’t acknowledge them either but to someone who is clearly mentally unstable like Martha, that is sufficient to feed the delusion. In episode 2, it was revealed that Donny was secretly dating a Transexual named Terri while he was being stalked by Martha.
This begs the question, why does Donny put up with Martha’s advances in the slightest when he is attempting to form a bond with someone else? I’m definitely not suggesting that Martha’s actions are acceptable because stalking is a criminal offence and I wouldn’t wish it upon anyone. Nonetheless, the show allows viewers to sympathise with both characters and understand their perspectives. Neither of them are in the right here.
Martha’s psychological disorders enforced her obsession with Donny most likely due to a single act of kindness. When they first met, Donny had been engulfed in guilt, shame and regret due to his own previous traumatic experience. During this dark time, Martha was the first person who recognised the good in him and he wanted to keep her around because he liked the way he was seen by her as that’s how he wanted to perceive himself.
For viewers, it’s easy to question Donny’s decisions and responses to Martha’s creepy stalking behaviour but imagine if we were partly depressed and filled with other negative emotions, barely getting through each day and someone came along and made us feel good about ourselves again — would we be logical and immediately report them to the police as soon as we found out they were ill or would our emotions drive our decisions?
Baby Reindeer shines a light on how trauma effects the people around us
The show explores how abusive experiences can inflict lifelong trauma which not only affects ourselves but inherently the people around us. In episode 4, viewers are greeted with a flashback depicting Donny’s early years performing as a stand-up comedian where he met Darrien (Tom Goodman-Hill) in Scotland. Their relationship rekindles in London as Darrien repulsively grooms Donny and eventually rapes him.
Some of these scenes were hard to watch, I must admit — I can’t imagine what it was like for Gadd to re-enact these traumatic events . In an interview, Gadd mentioned that although this was not directly related to Martha’s stalking, the trauma this incident brought out impacted the way he felt about himself and why he was so vulnerable when Martha appeared in his life. This sexual abuse was also the first time he experienced a sexual encounter with another male which resulted in confused sexual feelings and is what eventually leads him to exploring his sexuality and meeting Terri.
Netflix’s Baby Reindeer understandably chose not to reveal significant details about the real Martha Scott, nevertheless the final episode (7) mentions that Martha’s parents used to fight when she was a child and viewers are made to speculate that she probably suffered some kind of physical and or emotional abuse growing up which is what made her the way she is now. On multiple occasions throughout the show, Martha’s past as a convicted stalker is referenced and the show clearly states that she is most likely deranged and needs mental help.
Similarly with Terri, the show does not delve into much details but in episode 3, Martha attacks Terri and belittle’s her by announcing that she looks like a man. Subsequent to the attack, Terri reveals that she has been abused countless times throughout her life and although there is clearly some lingering trauma, it is not explored further. From these characters and their various experiences with different forms of abuse, viewers can understand the permanent effects of trauma and how it affects ourselves and if not treated, could affect our loved ones too.
What you should take away from Baby Reindeer
When asked in an interview, Gadd justified that his sole purpose for putting his story out there into the world was so that it may comfort someone else who might be going through similar circumstances. He mentioned that subsequent to the sexual abuse he experienced at the hands of writer Darrien, he felt “stupid” and blamed himself for letting it happen. Apparently among victims of rape and related forms of sexual abuse, this is a common feeling as the victims tend to feel like they are the ones who led the perpetrators on.
Gadd wanted Baby Reindeer to show people that they shouldn’t feel guilty because whatever abuse they suffered is not a result of their own doing. He also wanted to illustrate his sympathy for Martha, despite being eerily stalked and relentlessly harassed by her. It would have been fairly straightforward to portray Martha as the antagonist in the show and Donny as the victim, however Gadd knew she was unwell and wanted her to get better. Gadd uses the show to tell the story from Martha’s perspective as well in order for the viewers to sympathise with her.
What Martha did were criminal acts, however she genuinely cared for Donny and most likely loved him in her own twisted way but due to her illness she was unable to process those emotions in an organic way. Baby Reindeer is not meant to be a conclusive show, rather it is an autobiographical masterpiece that encircles pivotal events in Richard Gadd’s life expressing abuse, trauma, mental health and self-discovery depicted through an absorbing journey that is meant to bring comfort to people going through similar experiences and hopefully get the help they need.
