Fiona Harvey claimed that Piers Morgan paid her £250 ($313) to interview her about “Baby Reindeer,” and said she wants £1 million ($1.25 m) from him instead.
Harvey, 58, from Scotland, is believed to be the basis for the stalker character, Martha Scott, in Richard Gadd’s hit true crime Netflix series. In the show, Scott stalks comedian Donny Dunn (Gadd) and sends him 41,000 emails. But Harvey denied doing that in real life and described Gadd as “psychotic” during a 54-minute long interview on “Piers Morgan Uncensored.”
The interview, which was released on Thursday, has been watched over 11 million times, which demonstrates just how desperate audiences are to learn the truth behind “Baby Reindeer.”
The Netflix series has become a huge phenomenon since it was released on April 11, with audiences quickly finding Harvey online using some of the real social media messages that appeared in the show. Harvey has since threatened legal action against Gadd and Netflix for the harassment she’s faced.
Gadd and Netflix did not respond to Business Insider’s requests for comment.
“Baby Reindeer” has sparked a conversation about why fans engage with true crime content in a way that can have real-world ramifications, away from social media.
After previously saying she felt “used” by Morgan, in an interview with the Daily Record published on Tuesday, Harvey criticized Morgan’s show for paying her £250.
“They offered me £250 and I asked if that was what they paid everyone and, if so, I wanted to see documentation to that effect,” she said. “That documentation has not been forthcoming. I have not signed a contract for the interview and I will be seeking far more than a piddling £250.”
She added: “I’d settle for a million.”
Harvey also claimed that the broadcaster didn’t interact with her while she was on the “Piers Morgan Uncensored” set.
“I read a snippet online that Piers felt very sorry for me but he feels sorry for no one. His staff were being so nice and saying everything was OK, but when I went in to meet him he could barely look at me,” Harvey said.
“It was all a big act. He didn’t even say goodbye and only got the photograph taken with me because he needed it for the publicity,” she claimed.
BI was unable to reach Harvey for comment.
On Thursday, Morgan published a column about his interview with Harvey, where he claimed that she lied “quite a lot” but said that she is entitled to respond to Gadd’s depiction of Scott in the series.
Representatives for “Piers Morgan Uncensored” responded to a request for comment from BI by pointing toward Tuesday’s episode of the ITV chatshow, “Lorraine.”
Morgan told host Lorraine Kelly: “She’s not going to get £1 million. What she wants is an agent. We gave her the same amount we give 95% of all our guests.”
