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Freddie Knoller – Auschwitz Holocaust survivor and author Freddie Knoller, aged 89, is a holocaust survivor. He was born in Vienna in 1921 and his early childhood was spent living happily with his parents and two brothers. The family were well known for their musical abilities and were often seen performing on the stage and at various charity functions. As a young boy, Freddie was so used to anti-semitism that he hardly questioned it, not since the day at school when, aged six years old, he punched a fellow pupil for shouting "Sau Jud" at him. On 11 March 1938, everything changed when Austria was annexed by Germany. Freddie’s life, during the tragic period of 1938 – 1945 and during which time 6 million Jews were murdered by the Nazis, reads like a novel - arrests, prison, escapes, hiding with false papers, joining the resistance and concentration camps. But luck and courage saved him from extermination and the British eventually liberated him from Belsen-Bergen on April 15th 1945. Talks Together with John Landaw, Freddie has written a widely acclaimed book called ‘Desperate Journeys’, which gives a powerful and absorbing account of his struggle to survive. However, nothing compares with listening to a first-hand account of his moving and remarkable story. Not content to settle quietly into retirement, Freddie’s mission is to get out and tell his life story to as many people as he can - not only to young people but also to the wider public. Often working with the Holocaust Education Trust, he aims to raise awareness and understanding of the Holocaust and explain its relevance today. For he firmly believes that the Holocaust must have a permanent place in our nation’s collective memory. Desperate Journeys Illustrated either by a PowerPoint presentation or transparencies shown on a screen by an Overhead Projector, Freddie tells his life story – one of persecution, flight and the death camps of Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen. Waving farewell to his parents at seventeen (who he was never to see again), he went on to survive the horrors of a bombing, escaped to France, was interned, escaped again and then made his way to Paris where he spent an extraordinary two years living on commissions from German Soldiers. But that was only the beginning of his extraordinary story. Arrested by the Gestapo, Freddie fled and joined the Resistance. A betrayal led to his arrest and deportation to Auschwitz. He survived the camp and the infamous death march through the resources of luck, friendship and optimism. Finally, after a period in Dora Nordhausen, where he was forced to witness the hideous executions of other slave labourers, the British liberated him from Belsen-Bergen on April 15th 1945. Freddie’s talk is an honest, moving and frank account of an extraordinary time in history – an episode that should never be forgotten. What others have said ... 'It is difficult for me to put into words the impact of Freddie Knoller’s talk to the Upper Sixth Form at Repton School. His story told so movingly and with such humanity touched us all. Quite simply, it was unforgettable.' Tim Owen, Deputy Head (Academic), Repton School Click here to see more testimonials for Freddie ...