Richard Burton received poor reviews for the early scenes, since at fifty-six-years-old, he was clearly much too old to play Wagner as a young man.
Richard Burton's unmistakably stiff-necked movements (particularly conspicuous when he plays Richard Wagner as a young man) are the result of him wearing a neck brace during filming after a spine operation.
This mini-series was not shown until the autumn of 1984, due to concerns that it was too long and boring. It was widely felt that it would never have been released at all were it not for Richard Burton's death in the summer of that year. This mini-series was then broadcast as a tribute to him.
Richard Burton, Ralph Richardson, William Walton and Arthur Lowe had all died before it premiered on British television in the autumn of 1984.
During filming, the "Three Knights", Sir Laurence Olivier, Sir John Gielgud, and Sir Ralph Richardson, would dine together, and each would try to "outdo" the others in serving opulent meals.