Baby Reindeer scoops early Bafta win with prize for Jessica Gunning

Western Telegraph

11-05-2025

The Netflix hit, said to be inspired by the real-life experiences of creator Richard Gadd, sees his character Donny being hounded by a woman called Martha, played by Gunning, after he serves her a free cup of tea in the pub where he works.
Yorkshire-born Gunning beat her fellow Baby Reindeer star, trans actress Nava Mau, who played Donny's girlfriend.
Jessica Gunning and Richard Gadd (Jordan Pettitt/PA)
On stage on Sunday at London's Royal Festival Hall, Gunning said: 'Hello, cheeky chops, gosh, thank you Bafta, wow', before joking that she used to pretend to be a dog in her garden.
'I sometimes do this kind of cheesy thing where I look back on the younger me and moments in my life, and I imagine the kind of then me, seeing me now, and think, 'little did we know',' she said.
She said last year, her and Gadd were at the ceremony, and 'little did we know what the year had in store', while thanking him for changing 'her life'.
Gunning has previously picked up an Emmy, Sag award and Golden Globe for playing Martha, whose interference in Donny's life makes his world unravel, as the show also dramatises the failing comedian character's other traumas.
Baby Reindeer hit the headlines since being released on Netflix last year after a woman claiming to be the 'real' Martha came forward to bring a lawsuit against the streaming company.
Picking up the best supporting actor prize was Ariyon Bakare for the BBC LGBT drama Mr Loverman, based on the Bernardine Evaristo novel of the same name.
The programme follows Barrington Walker, played by Lennie James, as he contemplates leaving his wife for Bakare's character.
Accepting the prize, Bakare appeared to stop a few times as he became 'nervous' and thanked his sister for her support.
He said: 'This award stands on the shoulders of those who came before me, those who might have been afraid to come out, to be who they want to be.'
He also thanked James and Sharon D Clarke, who played Barrington's wife Carmel.
The ceremony was opened by host and Scottish actor Alan Cumming, who referenced his presenting role on The Traitors US in a sketch with footage of him shown in the Scottish Highlands castle where the hit reality series takes place.
On stage, Cumming also joked about his acting career, Facebook, and brought a fake children's book about long speeches and who winners are supposed to thank.
The Bafta TV Awards will air on BBC One at 7pm.