Szamuely was born in Moscow, the eldest of three children and elder son of György Szamuely and his wife, Elsa Szanto, both from Hungarian Jewish merchant families. He received his education in England, first at Bertrand Russell's Beacon Hill School in Hampshire, and later at the progressive Summerhill School in Suffolk.
Szamuely was born in Moscow to a family of Hungarian Jewish merchants. His parents, György Szamuely and Elsa Szanto, were both from prominent families. He studied in England, initially attending Bertrand Russell's Beacon Hill School in Hampshire before moving on to the progressive Summerhill School in Suffolk.