A Small Light is the heart-wrenching war drama about those who tried to protect Anne Frank

Bel Powley stars in this limited series based on real events.
A Small Light Release date cast plot trailer and all about the moving war drama on those who tried to protect Anne Frank
National Geographic for Disney/Dusan Martincek

A Small Light is a new, 8-part biographical limited series that chronicles the struggle of Miep Giles, a Dutch secretary, to hide Anne Frank's family – together with many others – during the German occupation of Holland during World War II.

The story of Anne Frank, a teenage girl who together with her family hid from the Nazis in an Amsterdam attic for two years before being discovered and sent to a concentration camp where she later died, is well known. This is thanks to the fame of her autobiographical title The Diary of a Young Girl, which was published posthumously in 1947 by the only surviving member of her immediate family: her father Otto Frank.

National Geographic for Disney/Dusan Martincek
National Geographic for Disney/Dusan Martincek

However, less publicised is the story of Miep, the young woman tasked with hiding the Frank family in her secret annex, while maintaining her day job, keeping her marriage going and guarding the most confidential of information.

The drama, brought to life by married creator duo Joan Rater and Tony Phelan (who collaborated on Grey's Anatomy) brings this inspiring story to the small screen.

National Geographic for Disney/Dusan Martincek
National Geographic for Disney/Dusan Martincek
Cast

Bel Powley (Everything I Know About Love; The King of Staten Island; The Morning Show) plays the role of Miep Gies, with Peaky Blinders actor Joe Coe playing her husband, Jan Gies.

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Meanwhile, Anne Frank will be played by Billie Boullet (a Jewish French-British actor who began her acting career in CBBC's The Worst Witch in 2020), while Ashley Brooke plays her sister, Margot Frank. Liev Schreiber plays Anne & Margot's father, Otto Frank, while Amira Casar plays her mother, Edith Frank.

National Geographic for Disney/Dusan Martincek
Plot

The 8-episode limited series chronicles the two-year period where Miep Gies, a “young, carefree secretary” (according to the synopsis), hides the Franks and others in her home. We see Miep's struggle to keep the family hidden, despite the heightening tensions amid Nazi crackdowns.

The action continues through to the tragic discovery of the Franks and others hiding in the annexe, when the Nazis raid Miep's home.

The synopsis describes the story as “the lesser-known story of how an ordinary secretary showed extraordinary courage during one of the darkest moments in history”.

National Geographic for Disney/Dusan Martincek
National Geographic for Disney/Dusan Martincek
Trailer

For those who would like an insight into the show's action, a one minute 58 second long trailer is available to watch on YouTube. It depicts a shocked Giles (Powley) watching the plight of Jewish people in Amsterdam as they're taken away by the Nazi soldiers, together with scenes of burning buildings as the Nazi persecution worsens.

We see Powley's character having conversations with her husband about her decision to hide Frank's family, and helping Margot to bravely go into hiding – with the rest of her family following.

Content

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Release date

A Small Light originally premiered on National Geographic on 1 May this year. However, it is now available to stream in its entirety on Disney Plus.