The life of Sir Nicholas Winton, the Kindertransport hero who oversaw the rescue of hundreds of Jewish children, is set to be dramatised in a new Holocaust biopic. 

One Life will star 82-year-old Silence of the Lambs actor Anthony Hopkins in the leading role alongside Johnny Flynn, 37, who will play the “British Schindler” at an earlier phase of his life, entertainment news website Deadline reported last week.

For close to half a century, Sir Nicholas did not discuss his role in bringing close to 700 mainly Jewish children to England and saving them from near certain death in Nazi occupied-Czechoslovakia just prior to the Second World War.

The part the former stockbroker played in rescuing hundreds of children was finally made public when his wife Grete discovered a scrapbook of photos and documents in their attic. 

Producers Iain Canning and Emile Sherman told Deadline: “Despite never wanting any attention for his altruistic act, Nicky’s story and the story of those he saved must be told.

“To be a part of sharing this moment in history with the world is an extraordinary privilege. Anthony and Johnny are without a doubt the right people to bring [this] beautifully crafted screenplay about this amazing man to life.”

The film is reportedly set to arrive in UK cinemas next year.

Sir Nicholas, who was knighted in 2003, died in Maidenhead in 2015 aged 106