'Baby Reindeer,' Richard Gadd's breakout Netflix series, receives 11 Emmy nominations

Netflix’s “Baby Reindeer,” the British drama that became one of the most controversial and buzzed-about series of the year, has now become a major contender in the Emmys race, scoring 11 nominations in the limited series category.

“Baby Reindeer” tells the story of Donny Dunn, an aspiring comedian moonlighting as a bartender, whose encounters with an eccentric woman named Martha at the pub where he works become increasingly uncomfortable and sinister. The series was created and written by Richard Gadd, who stars as Donny. On Wednesday, it nabbed nominations for limited series, actor (Gadd), supporting actor (Tom Goodman-Hall) and supporting actress (Jessica Gunning and Nava Mau). The series also was nominated for writing and directing.

Adapted from Gadd’s autobiographical one-man play — the title card at the start of each episode states that it is “a true story” — “Baby Reindeer” became an instant sensation when it launched on Netflix in April. Viewers were fascinated with its mix of comedy and drama, punctuated with disturbing depictions of sexual assault and mental health. Critics gave high praise to the cast, particularly the performances of Gadd and Gunning. It spent eight weeks on Netflix’s global top 10 list, making it one of the streamer’s most watched series of the year.

The show and the events it depicted also sparked investigations by armchair detectives who tried to figure out the true identities of the characters on the show, particularly Martha and Darrien (Goodman-Hill), a television writer who sexually assaults Donny. In an interview with The Times in April, Gunning called her performance as Martha, who stalks Donny, an “interpetation” of Gadd’s vision and said she never asked him about her real-life counterpart.

However, in the months since the show’s premiere, Fiona Harvey, a 58-year-old Scotswoman, claimed to be the basis for Martha in an interview with Piers Morgan on his YouTube channel. She sued Netflix in June, seeking $170 million in damages for what she called defamation and emotional distress. A Netflix spokesperson said in a statement about the suit: “We intend to defend this matter vigorously and to stand by Richard Gadd’s right to tell his story.”