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Piers Morgan slams Netflix for 'failing in their duty of care' to Baby Reindeer's 'real-life Martha' - after facing backlash for his own interview
Piers Morgan has slammed Netflix and accused it of 'failing in their duty of care' to Baby Reindeer's 'real-life Martha' Fiona Harvey after he faced backlash for an explosive interview with her.
Morgan questioned Ms Harvey on his show Piers Morgan Uncensored over the weekend, but faced criticism from victims of stalkers and those concerned for Ms Harvey's wellbeing.
In the controversial discussion, which already has more than 11million views, the pair discussed Netflix's hit new series Baby Reindeer, based on the real-life story of actor and comedian Richard Gadd's ordeal at the hands of a female stalker.
Speaking to ITV's Lorraine, Morgan said he believes his channel has 'performed our duty of care' but questioned whether Netflix may have 'defamed' Ms Harvey by claiming she is a convicted stalker.
He said: 'The key question is whether they have defamed her? If you accuse somebody of being a convicted stalker and they're not a convicted stalker, that's a pretty serious mistake to make…
Piers Morgan addressed the controversial interview on ITV's Lorraine on Tuesday morning
Morgan questioned Fiona Harvey on his show Piers Morgan Uncensored over the weekend
'If it turns out that she isn't then the Netflix claim at the start of every episode, 'This is a true story' becomes extremely problematic because it's not a true story.'
He added: 'I think they've got problems here because she is clearly determined to have her day in court with Netflix.
'The key question after watching the series and watching my interview is - is it actually a true story? And the key part of that is did she actually go to prison? Is she a convicted stalker? As I sit here Lorraine, there is no actual evidence so far that she has ever even been in court.'
Fiona Harvey had previously not been identified in reports surrounding the Netflix series before her bombshell interview with Morgan.
During the interview she confirmed she is the woman Baby Reindeer's character Martha is based upon, but denied ever stalking Mr Gadd, sexually assaulting him or attacking his girlfriend.
She also denies ever being arrested by police or going to prison.
The show alleges that the comedian's female stalker conducted a relentless campaign which started after he served her in a London pub while working as a bartender.
Fiona Harvey had previously not been identified in reports surrounding the Netflix series before her bombshell interview with Morgan
Baby Reindeer depicts the character of Martha, played by Jessica Gunning, as a female stalker who was obsessed with Gadd
In the show, Martha goes to court and pleads guilty to stalking and intimidating Donny
At the end of the final epsiode, it is revealed that the reason Martha uses this name is because she used to have a baby reindeer toy as a child, which was described as the 'only good thing' about her childhood
The Netflix hit sees Donny Dunn (Richard Gadd) offer Martha a cup of tea on the house during their first encounter, which Ms Harvey has claimed never happened.
The show alleges Gadd was bombarded with 41,000 emails, 350 hours of voice messages, 744 tweets, 48 Facebook messages, and 106 letters during the stalking campaign.
Ms Harvey told Morgan this was 'simply not true', adding she sent 'less than ten' emails to Gadd and 'one letter'.
During the interview, Ms Harvey referenced a scene in the show where character Martha admits to intimidating Gadd's character and receives a nine-month prison sentence.
'That is completely untrue, very, very defamatory to me, very career damaging,' she said.
Piers Morgan's bombshell interview with the 'real' Martha from Baby Reindeer has left most viewers with more questions than answers
Netflix shows Martha going into the pub where Donny worked nearly everyday, sitting outside his house at the bus stop for hours on end and even gate-crashing his live comedy shows
The show claimed that Martha came into the pub where Donny was a barman and in a moment of sympathy towards this stranger he offered her a free cup of tea - inadvertently sparking the obsession
'I wanted to rebut that completely on this show - I am not a stalker, I have not been to jail, I've not got injunctions - it is complete nonsense.'
Many viewers said they were left 'disturbed' by the interview, branding it a 'painful' watch.
But Morgan said he believed his show had performed its 'duty of care' by staying in touch with her since the interview as he revealed Ms Harvey 'wants an agent'.
He told Lorraine he did not see 'any sign of anyone who I thought was mentally unwell' but added he does believe she has 'an obsessive streak' and that she 'lied a lot in the interview'.
He also criticised the show's attempts to anonymise Ms Harvey, saying it was 'disingenuous' of Gadd to ask fans not to look up the real person behind the character.
'I think that is pretty disingenuous as they have used segments of the exact messages she sent so any internet sleuth can put that in and find it on her phone.
'I think they failed in a duty of care to Fiona Harvey, especially Netflix,' Morgan said.
Responding to criticism over the interview, he said: 'I felt it was important that she was allowed to have her say as she had already been revealed by the media as the real life Martha but she had no ability to tell her story.'
Viewers previously took to social media to blast Morgan for allegedly 'exploiting' Ms Harvey.
One user said: 'Fiona Harvey's fixed beliefs and delusions are clear signs of severe mental health issues to anybody that works within this field. 'It's clear she's being exploited for financial gain.'
Another wrote: 'It was highly irresponsible to put Fiona Harvey on TV!'
Since the release of Baby Reindeer, Ms Harvey has been posting regularly on social media protesting her innocence.
Lawyer Laura Wray who was allegedly stalked by an ex-employee similar to the character 'Martha' in the new Netflix series Baby Reindeer
Richard Gadd and Jessica Gunning attended a photo call for a screening in LA earlier this month
Other alleged stalking victims have since come forward to share their own experiences with Ms Harvey.
Laura Wray, widow of former Labour MP Jimmy Wray, told the Mirror she fears for her safety after the release of the Netflix series.
The Scottish lawyer described the national attention on her alleged stalker as 'pretty distressing', adding: 'My partner and I are concerned about what she might do next. Is she going to come after me?
'She is posting things on Facebook accusing me of all sorts, and of being abusive. You don't know where it will end.'
Ms Wray said she met Ms Harvey after hiring her on a two-week trial at her Scottish law firm in 1997.
She said she fired her days later because she was 'completely incapable of behaving herself'.
After being sacked, Wray claims she was then allegedly harassed by Harvey — who was known at the time as Fiona Muir.
Wray claimed Harvey bombarded her with phone calls, emails and texts. She also claimed Harvey had reported her to social services over alleged mistreatment of her child.
She said: 'She made some bizarre allegation that I was in my car driving and somehow managed to hit my son who was sitting in the back of the car in the child seat.
'Eventually it was all dropped but that's when I went for an interim injunction.
'Thankfully, it worked. She didn't defend it. We never heard any more from her.'
Netflix and representatives for Richard Gadd have been contacted for comment.