Early life Martin was born in Beverley, near Hull, England in May 1978 and attended Beverley High school where she appeared in school plays. She adopted the middle name Maxwell (her grandfather's name) to distinguish her from another member with the same name when she joined Equity. Her father was the managing director of a pharmaceutical company and her mother was a research scientist. Her mother gave up her job to bring up Anna and her elder brother Adam. After she left school Martin studied history at Liverpool University, specialising in the First World War. She joined the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) after completing her studies at Liverpool. In her final year at LAMDA her father was diagnosed with cancer, although he lived long enough to see her stage performance as Alexandra in The Little Foxes at the Donmar Warehouse. Martin is in a relationship with the director Roger Michell. Career Martin first came to prominence on the London West End stage playing ...