Martin Sixsmith was educated at Oxford, Harvard and the Sorbonne. From 1980 to 1997 he worked for the BBC as the Corporation's correspondent in Moscow, Washington, Brussels and Warsaw.  From 1997 to 2002 he worked for the government as  Director of Communications and Press Secretary.  Martin is now a writer, presenter and journalist, living in London. He is the author of two novels, Spin and I Heard Lenin Laugh, and several works of non-fiction, including Philomena, first published in 2009 as The Lost Child of Philomena Lee.

During the darkest days of WW2, in her home country of Holland, Anna-Maria van der Vaart sheltered Allied pilots, gave refuge to persecuted Jews and stood up to the Nazis by participating in audacious acts of resistance. This is Anna-Maria’s remarkable story alongside those who risked their lives to save others.