Esther Rantzen reunited Holocaust survivor with rescuer Nicholas Winton
Esther Rantzen enabled Holocaust survivor Lady Milena Grenfell-Baines to meet Sir Nicholas Winton and thank him for helping save her life. Their reunion on the BBC programme That’s Life! brought wider attention to Winton’s little-known rescue work and created one of television’s most moving moments.
Winton helped 669 children, mostly Jewish, escape Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia to Britain by train before the Second World War. His role remained largely unknown until his wife found a scrapbook in 1987; the BBC then traced Milena, who had escaped aged nine with her younger sister. Rantzen arranged their meeting in 1988, telling Milena not to reveal who she was before the surprise.
- Rantzen arranged Milena Grenfell-Baines’s first meeting with Winton.
- Winton helped 669 children escape to Britain.
- His rescue work came to light through a scrapbook found in 1987.
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Nicholas Winton was a British humanitarian who rescued 669 children, mostly Jewish, from Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia and arranged trains to bring them to safety in Britain before the Second World War. His actions saved hundreds of lives from persecution at a time when few countries would accept refugees. His extraordinary rescue operation remained unknown for nearly fifty years, even to those he had saved.
Milena was one of these children, escaping to Britain aged nine with her younger sister. She grew up without knowing the full details of how her life had been saved. Winton's identity as her rescuer remained a mystery until 1987, when his wife discovered a scrapbook documenting his rescue work, prompting the BBC to trace survivors and piece together the full story.
Winton's rescue mission represented one of the most important humanitarian operations of the Second World War, though it remained largely unknown for decades. The 669 children he helped save went on to build new lives in Britain and have families of their own. The rediscovery of this story in 1987 revealed a significant chapter of wartime history that had been almost entirely forgotten.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “Esther Rantzen was the only reason I got to thank Sir Nicholas Winton for saving my life, Holocaust survivor reveals”.