Peter O'Toole said the use of comedy to explore the relationship between a father and son was part of what attracted him to the film. He remarked: "All of us had difficult familial relationships. I think it's a film for all of us who understand the relationship between a father and son. It's been interesting watching various members of the crew looking at the monitors during scenes. They come up to me then and say "I had the same thing with my father."
The cricket in the ballroom scene is filmed in the same room of Elveden Hall, Suffolk, England, UK as the trade conference in Tangier in Tuer n'est pas jouer (1987), and the balcony from where James Bond shoots General Pushkin can clearly be seen.