Based on "Sanders of the River," with Lesley Banks and Paul Robeson.
Jack London, who played M'bapi, competed in the 1928 Olympics in Amsterdam, winning Silver in the 100m and Bronze in the 4 x 100m.
A rare broadcast of the film took place by the BBC in 1985.
Some of the river scenes were shot on the River Thames.
Harbottle says "My Mother said I never should..." which Tibbetts finishes with "...play with my logbook in the wood." This is a reference to the traditional children's rhyme, "My Mother said, / I never should / Play with the gypsies /in the wood ...".