Such were the budgetary constraints on this shoot, the production had to auction off various props in order to raise enough money to buy essential film stock needed to complete the picture.
The film was the most commercially successful British film of 1995.
Danny Boyle knew he had a hit on his hands when the film debuted at the Cannes Film Festival and the organizers had to set up three extra screenings just to meet demand.
Most of the film's £1 million budget went into building the set for the flat.
Danny Boyle has stated that of the films he has directed, this is his father's favorite, and that whenever a new film directed by Boyle junior is released (including Quisiera ser millonario (2008), which won the academy award both for Best Picture and Best Director) and he asks Boyle senior's opinion, his father's review is always the same - "It was good, but not as good as 'Shallow Grave'."