Baby reindeer: Alleged inspiration for 'Martha' sues Netflix for £133m | UK News

Fiona Harvey has accused Netflix of ruining her life and telling “brutal lies”. The streaming giant said it plans to “vigorously” defend itself against the allegations.

The woman who allegedly inspired the stalker in hit Netflix series Baby Reindeer is suing the streaming platform for $170 million (£133 million).

The series is reportedly based on the real-life experiences of writer Richard Gadd, who plays himself opposite stalker Martha Scott.

Fiona Harvey, 58, says she is inspiration for Marthawho begins stalking Gadd after serving him a free cup of tea in the pub where he works.

In the lawsuit, Ms. Harvey accused Netflix of spreading “brutal lies,” including claiming she is a “twice-convicted stalker sentenced to five years in prison.”

“The defendants told these lies, and never stopped, because it was a better story than the truth, and the best stories made money,” it reads.

“Because of the defendants’ lies, misdeeds and completely reckless misconduct, Harvey’s life has been ruined.”

According to legal documents filed in a California federal court, she accuses Netflix of defamation, intentional infliction of emotion, negligence, gross negligence and violations of her right of publicity.

A Netflix spokesperson told Sky News: “We intend to defend this case vigorously and defend Richard Gadd's right to tell his story.”

In an interview with journalist Piers Morgan last month, Ms Harvey said she had been “forced” to come forward after receiving death threats online from “internet detectives”.

Fiona Harvey has repeatedly denied being a stalker and described the series as “a work of fiction”.

Gadd asked fans to stop trying to discover people behind the show's characters, telling The Hollywood Reporter that he would have made a documentary about it if he wanted the people to be found.

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Sky News' US partner network NBC News reports that the lawsuit describes the show's claim that “this is a true story” as “the biggest lie in television history”.

“Netflix destroyed a woman, claiming, among many allegations, that she was a doomed woman,” Richard Roth, Ms. Harvey’s lawyer, wrote in an email.

“He never contacted her. He never checked the facts. He never made any effort to understand the truth about her 'real story'!”

The lawsuit seeks actual damages and compensatory damages at $50 million (£39 million) each, punitive damages at $20 million (£16 million); as well as “all profits” from Baby Reindeer at $50 million (£39 million).