Sasha is runner-up on Child Genius after Anne Frank inspired round

A 12-year-old expert on the life of Anne Frank has been crowned the runner-up in Channel4’s Child Genius, by Abi Prettyman.

Sasha Gordon was watched by millions on television on Tuesday night as five youngsters aged seven to 12 battling it out for the coveted title in the contest run by mensa. Her questions were set by Gillian Walnes of the Anne Frank Trust UK.

She said she chose her specialist subject partly because she enjoys writing but had been in a state of shock at reaching the final. She later said: “At the moment I’m a little bit upset, but I’ll go away and after a few days I’ll be proud of myself.”

Her mother Claire – who said the family had lost members in the Shoah, said: “To take part and see it through to the end, and have the stamina to keep going and pushing yourself, she’s a winner to me.”

Walnes heralded Sasha as an “astonishing little girl” who was “very serious about studying” and showed great passion.

She also paid tribute to the children’s ‘remarkable parents’ who “were all very involved.”