Baby Reindeer star unrecognisable in new BBC drama featuring Coronation Street actor

Daily Mirror

5 hours ago

The BBC has dropped first-look images of Baby Reindeer star Richard Gadd in his next TV project.
Baby Reindeer star Richard Gadd appears to be unrecognisable in a new BBC drama.
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The comedian rose to fame after starring in the Netflix series based on his own real-life experience of being stalked by a woman while he worked at a pub.
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Originally a one-man show for the Edinburgh Fringe, Richard's play catapulted into a huge hit as it showed a seemingly friendly encounter between struggling comedian Donny and a woman named Martha (played by Jessica Gunning) quickly turning sinister.
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Martha's obsession with Donny grows to the point where she waits outside his house, sends him thousands of emails and turns violent towards his girlfriend and parents.
The success of Baby Reindeer sparked a huge national response with a woman named Fiona Harvey coming forward and claiming to be the real Martha, leading to an explosive interview with Piers Morgan and she later attempted to sue Netflix, claiming she was falsely presented as a convicted stalker and the series inflicted emotional distress on her after being advertised as a 'true story'.
Since Richard's story went viral, he's attempted to distance himself from the Netflix series, saying he'll never speak about the identities of the real people the characters are based on again.
He's now starring in a BBC drama titled Half Man, which recently finished filming in and around Glasgow.
Co-produced by the BBC and HBO, the six-part series (which was originally titled Lions) follows two brothers as they reunite, with Richard starring opposite Bafta award-winning actor Jamie Bell.
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Richard plays Ruben and Jamie plays Niall, who reunite after years of estrangement leading to an explosion of violence that catapults viewers back through their lives over the course of the series.
The show spans almost 40 years from the 1980s to the present day, featuring Mitchell Robertson and Stuart Campbell as the young Niall and Ruben respectively in their younger years.
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The synopsis teases: 'Half Man explores the highs and lows of Ruben and Niall's relationship, from meeting them as troubled teenagers to witnessing their falling out as adults – with all the good, bad, terrible, funny, angry, and challenging moments along the way. The series will capture the wild energy of a changing city – a changing world, even – and plumb the depths of what it means to be a man.'
The cast also includes Neve McIntosh as Niall's mother Lori and Marianne McIvor as Ruben's mother Maura, as well as Coronation Street and Rivals actor Charlie De Melo, Bilal Hasna, Julie Cullen, Amy Manson, Philippine Velge, Stuart McQuarrie, Piers Ewart, Scot Greenan, and newcomers Charlotte Blackwood and Calum Manchip.
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In a first-look image of the new show, Richard is unrecognisable in a white vest and a new haircut, showing off his muscular physique as he hunches over a table opposite Jamie's character.
Another picture shows him with his overgrown facial hair in a hospital bed, looking stern and concerned.
Fans shared their shock at how he now looks, with one writing: 'What a glow up, my guy.'
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When one wrote: 'Is that Baby Reindeer?!' another replied: 'Oh my!' while someone else said: 'A baby no more.'
'Dude got jacked,' someone else said, as another wrote: 'Been in the gym lad!'
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Teasing filming coming to an end on Instagram, Richard previously said: 'That's a belated wrap on Half Man! Thanks to everyone who worked on this show. I was blessed with the most outstanding producers, directors, cast and crew. Thanks to each and every one of them!
'I do not want to post too much but swipe right and you will see a photo of me and Jamie post-wrap at 3am in the pouring rain. He looks absolutely delighted.
'Roll on the edit. Roll on post. Roll on maybe, just maybe… being able to look my Dad in the eye again.'
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Richard previously told Radio Times that Half Man, his next project after Baby Reindeer, will pick up thematically where the Netflix series ended.
"There's a lot of themes like isolation and loneliness and shared trauma and generational trauma in Baby Reindeer," he said.
"It's similar with Half Man – it borrows from a world of broken people."
Half Man will air in 2026 on BBC iPlayer, BBC One and BBC Scotland in the UK & Ireland, and on HBO Max in the US, Latin America and Europe