In her autobiography, "Bonkers", Jennifer Saunders writes about the cancellation of the series. She revealed that actors (but mentioned no names) offered to do a fourth series for less money before the final decision was made.
In her autobiography, Jennifer Saunders writes about coming up with the series. She was frustrated that the only depictions of country life on television consisted of extremely posh upper class people and extremely dim dirty people and nothing inbetween. She also writes she was largely inspired by the movie 'Calendar Girls'.
The title, "Jam and Jerusalem," specifically refers to the hymn "Jerusalem", which is a hallmark of women's clubs in the UK and is traditionally sung during each meeting. The title also refers to the idea that these women's groups have discussions about domestic topics, such jam-making. As these references are largely unknown in the U.S., the title was changed to "Clatterford" to make the series more relevant to American audiences.
Following the third series in 2009, the series was axed by the BBC, though no official statement was made, with the news instead being revealed by Pauline McLynn on her blog. McLynn revealed that the cast and Jennifer Saunders had wished to do another series.
Joanna Lumley appears almost unrecognisable in her role as Delilah, as the character is an elderly unclean woman, whilst former model Lumley is known for her glamorous appearance and trademark blonde hair, and subsequently had to wear heavy make up for the role.