Michael Lewis discusses his family memoir Flight From Prague, a true story of courage, exile and the making of a refugee in the shadow of World War II. 

In 1938, as German troops cross the border into Czechoslovakia, Michael’s father, Harry Levy, begins a perilous journey in search of safety, from the Sudetenland across Nazi Germany, arriving in Belfast. 

Reunited with his childhood sweetheart, dancer and Holocaust survivor Helen Lewis, who had a deep connection with The Crescent, Harry must come to terms with what has been lost and build a new life in Northern Ireland. 

Meet the Contributors

Michael Lewis was born and grew up in Belfast. His father was a refugee from Czechoslovakia, his mother, a Holocaust survivor. After reading Modern Languages at Oxford, he trained as a teacher at York University and taught in comprehensive schools in England for 35 years. For twenty years he was the headteacher of King Edward VII School in Sheffield. After retirement in 2008, he took on a variety of roles, including as a member of the Employment Tribunal, the Independent Ethics Panel of South Yorkshire Police and the Teaching Regulation Agency’s professional conduct panel. In 2009 the University of Sheffield awarded him an honorary Doctor of Letters. In 1979 he married Petra, also a teacher. They have lived in Sheffield since 1988 and have two adult sons and three grandchildren. September 2025 saw the publication of Flight from Prague, the Making of a Refugee (Haythorp Books).

Seamus McKee is a journalist and broadcaster. He has presented news, current affairs, arts programmes and documentaries on radio and television, including Good Morning Ulster, Spotlight and The Radio Two Arts Programme. Most recently he presented Evening Extra on BBC Radio Ulster. Since leaving the BBC in 2020 he has been involved as a board member in The Ulster History Circle, The Linenhall Library and Ulster Wildlife. He continues to facilitate discussions and conduct public interviews on occasions such as the Belfast Book Festival, in which he's delighted to be taking part.

Helen Lewis was a celebrated dancer, choreographer and Holocaust survivor who became a pioneering figure in contemporary dance in Northern Ireland. The Crescent Arts Centre is proud to be home to the Ulster History Circle’s blue plaque in her name, and to have our primary Dance Studio named after her.