Viewers of new hit Netflix series Baby Reindeer have been reacting to a hidden reference to another show.
The series follows a struggling comic named Donny (played by Richard Gadd) who is being stalked by a woman called Martha (played by Jessica Gunning).
The harassment appears to take place over four and a half years, involving a series of invasive behaviour from Martha to Donny, including following him home, turning up to his workplace and sending him multiple emails a day.
One scene in the seven-episode series shows Donny’s inbox, filled with emails from his stalker, using an email address consisting of a series of random numbers.
The Independent’s Chief Culture Reporter and co-host of The Lost Boys podcast noticed that the numbers are not as random as it first seems.
Stolworthy posted on X: “The ‘random series of numbers like spam’ used in the stalker’s email address are, in fact, the cursed numbers from Lost”.
Baby Reindeer: the ‘random series of numbers like spam’ used in the stalker’s email address are, in fact, the cursed numbers from LOST pic.twitter.com/JksoAJwLJs
— Jacob Stolworthy (@JacobStolworthy) April 18, 2024
The numbers 4, 8, 15, 16, 23 and 42, appear consistently throughout Lost, the six-season series which will be celebrating its 20th anniversary in September.
Following survivors of a plane crash who find themselves on a mysterious island, Lost refers to those specific numbers throughout the show, typically featured in background shots of flashback sequences.
Users on X have been responding to Stolworthy’s observation, with several calling it a “brilliant spot”.
Another user reposted Stolworthy’s tweet, which showed the number series’ appearances in each show side by side, writing: “2024 and we still getting Lost Easter eggs. We love to see it!”
Elsewhere, the soundtrack to Baby Reindeer features a host of classic rock and pop songs, with music from Dusty Springfield, George Harrison and Peggy Lee. Check out the full soundtrack here.
