Richard Gadd has shared a heartfelt speech with fans after scooping up the award for Breakthrough Limited Series at the Gotham TV Awards for Baby Reindeer. The actor, who created and starred in the hit Netflix show, spoke about the intense issues in the show while offering heartfelt advice.
He said: “It’s weird that a show as messed up as this has gone on to strike a chord with so many people. I think it speaks to the fact that I think a lot of people in the world are struggling right now.
“I don’t know much in the way of advice, but I do know that nothing lasts forever. So if you are in a rut, just keep going. Persevere, persevere, persevere and I promise you things will get better.”
The series beat shows including Ripley, Shogun and Under the Bridge to land the amazing accolade.
© Scott GarfittRichard also shared several posts from his time in New York City, where the awards were held, including doing some classic tourist sightseeing.
Baby Reindeer follows Richard’s character ‘Donny’, a stand-up comedian who grows increasingly uncomfortable as he is relentlessly pursued by a stalker named Martha, who becomes obsessed with him and sends him hundreds of emails, hours of voicemails and follows him to his home.
Baby Reindeer: Martha's obsession in numbers
© Ed Miller/NetflixRichard Gadd has been vocal about his stalker, named 'Martha' in the show, and just how many messages, voicemails, tweets and emails he received from her before contact was cut off. It included:
- 41,000 emails
- 744 tweets
- 100 pages of letters
- 350 hours of voicemails
The star’s success has received some controversy after the real-life counterpart of Martha, Fiona Harvey, appeared on Piers Morgan’s talk show to discuss the series, and confirmed that she was looking into taking legal action against Netflix for the portrayal.
© Simon AckermanShe told Piers: “They have billed it as a ‘true story’. So has he. And it’s not. It’s blatantly not. Even if the email thing was true, the rest is not.”
When asked if she was ever in love with Richard, she added: “Piers. Is that a serious question? No… I gave him the brush off. He asked me to sleep, with him with a big green spot in his face one day. I said no I’m sorry, I’m not interested.
“He asked me to sleep with him. He said, ‘Would I like my curtains fixed’? And I laughed and he said, ‘That’s a euphemism. You want me to come home with you?’ And I said, ‘I’ve got a boyfriend’. I gave him the brush off big time, I think, you know, subtly so. But the bottom line is.. No, I don’t fancy little boys without jobs. That sounds awful. That sounds really, really callous. But, you know.”
