Jessica Gunning on Baby Reindeer success: "It took 17 years for the part of Martha to come around"

Gunning is smiley and giggly and uses the word “special” a lot to describe her involvement in Baby Reindeer – with good reason. Since it launched, it has been seen by 252.1 million viewers, making it one of the most-watched Netflix shows of all time. It came out of nowhere, with a strange title based on Gadd’s one-man play of the same name from 2019, and then suddenly, it was all anyone was talking about.

“I don't think you ever do a job imagining loads of people are going to watch it, or you're going to be nominated for awards,” Gunning says. She mentions the types of people who have approached her – from teenagers to 80-year-olds and even famous fans including Kathy Bates. “When you meet people you’ve admired for years and they know your name, you’re like ‘Huh?’ It’s all just been nuts.”

It might seem like Gunning was an overnight success, but in reality, she’s been working for the better part of 18 years, although she’s probably most recognisable for supporting roles and comedic parts. The 38-year-old from Holmfirth, West Yorkshire appeared in David Mitchell and Robert Webb’s Back, the film Pride, and Stephen Merchant’s The Outlaws, where she was also in the writers’ room.

She used to do talks at her drama school, Rose Bruford College in London, to students in their third year wanting to be actors. “I'd tell them, ‘Think about the actors who you admire – like Olivia Colman or Idris Elba – they didn’t necessarily graduate from drama school and work straight away. The things you love them in are probably things they did in their 30s or 40s. These things do take time.’

“It took 17 years for the part of Martha to come around,” she continues, “hopefully it doesn’t take 17 more.” It’s one of several answers she starts with, “I’ve said previously,” which is understandable, because she’s been interviewed about Baby Reindeer a lot. Although not all coverage since its release has been positive. Fiona Harvey, who claims to be the real Martha, has filed a $170m (£132m) defamation lawsuit against Netflix in the US.

Did Gunning ever consider the 'real' Martha? “As soon as I read the scripts, I was just playing a character, and so was Richard [he plays a version of himself called Donny Dunn]. We were just telling the story – all the work was there on the page. I never would have wanted to play Martha as a villain or a baddie, because I never saw her in that way. She’s multifaceted and nuanced.”

Her next project is Simon Farnaby’s film adaptation of Enid Blyton’s The Magic Faraway Tree, where she’ll be working with fellow BAFTA nominee Nicola Coughlan, plus Andrew Garfield and Claire Foy. Gunning’s rising star power is impossible to ignore, despite her desire to keep a relatively low-profile.

“I'm not on social media and I've never felt the pressure to join. I don't see myself as a celebrity in that way. I don't necessarily think actors need to always be in the public eye. Sometimes you can just do your job and that's that. I think there is a fascination with actors – I have it too – where people want to know more about them. Somebody said the other day that people look at how many followers actors have in order to give them parts. I'm buggered if that's true!”

Gunning came out as gay to her family and friends in 2022, and she confirmed her sexuality in June 2024 during a podcast interview on Reign with Josh Smith shortly after Baby Reindeer was released, calling herself a “big, ol’ gay”. “I didn't intend to publicly announce anything. It was just a really nice conversation. I ended up mentioning it then, because I couldn't really answer any of the questions without saying that. It took me a while to realise I was gay.”

Surely this type of representation is important when it’s coming from someone so heavily in the spotlight? Gunning reflects: “After that conversation, I had loads of people say it meant a lot to them to hear my story. Those kinds of things do matter, especially if people feel seen.”

Gunning says she feels like the same person after all the reception she’s received for playing Martha, but her life has undeniably changed forever. “It's been amazing to be a part of something that's felt really… special.” There’s that word again, and perhaps it’s really the only one that will do.

The latest issue of Radio Times is out now – subscribe here.

Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to see what's on tonight. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.