On Netflix, the series My Little Reindeer tells the true story of harassment. The creator of the series spoke about the true outcome of this stalking and, in reality, it varies slightly.
Don't be fooled by the title My Little Reindeer, there is nothing sweet or childish about this new Netflix mini-series. Because over the course of these seven relatively short episodes, we follow the ordeal of Donny, a comedian targeted by a stalker with completely twisted behavior.
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The story told in the series takes on an even more unhealthy dimension when we know that it is inspired by a real one. The character of Donny is directly inspired by Richard Gadd, the creator of the series, who also plays himself. Exactly as in My Little Reindeeroffering a drink to a lonely stranger in a bar earned him several years of harassment from the latter — a stalking going further and further. The series touches on other difficult aspects of Gadd's life.
Of course, to recover from this stalking, Richard Gadd had to undergo therapy. But he also made it a one-man show, in 2019, as a cathartic ordeal through art and humor. The series is part of the continuity. Even if it follows the exact course of all this harassment, since Richard Gadd is entirely involved in this biographical work, there remains a vague area: the end.
Warning, the rest contains spoilers for the end of the series.
My Little Reindeer is a true story, but the ending is not the same
In the series, Martha ends up being arrested — “thanks” to a voicemail she leaves him, which then constitutes damning evidence to alert the authorities. She pleads guilty. In total, she received nine months in prison; to which is added a removal injunction for a period of 5 years.
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Is the outcome the same in reality? The answer is partially unknown: we do not know what became of the real Martha, in the sense that there is no formal source on the subject. But the ending still seems to be different, if we are to believe Richard Gadd. He actually explains in the columns of The Times that she did not receive any prison time.
Apparently he didn't fight for this to be the case, because, again in his own words, he didn't want ” throw someone so mentally unstable in jail “. The situation is in any case “ resolved “.
Still, the resulting trauma required several years of therapy. The writing of the series was also particularly “ cathartic » for Richard Gadd, who describe this creative act like “ the best therapy “. This does not only concern the stalking that he experienced, but also the sexual assault depicted in the series (this episode was supposed to be longer and darker, before to finally be shortened).
