This was to have originally been a production of American Playhouse, a division of PBS, that would have co-financed the film with The Samuel Goldwyn Company. However the folding of the American Playhouse label combined with Goldwyn's financial troubles led to the film going into turnaround, where it was eventually produced by Castle Rock Entertainment.
Character actor Robert Lang was reunited on screen in this film opposite Helen Mirren nearly 25 years after portraying her father in Savage Messiah (1972) by Ken Russell.
The film is clearly set in a border seaside fishing village in Ireland. However, Kathleen is clearly seen voting in the Fermanagh-South Tyrone by-election: a completely land-locked constituency.