When Lady Jane sends Churchill a cheque for £25,000 as a reply to the loss of her grandson, she is referencing Lady MacRobert who lost three sons. In their memory she donated £25,000 to buy a Short Stirling which was called MacRobert's Reply. The RAF continued to use the name, most recently on a Panavia Tornado.
The movie is set and second unit filming takes place at Thunderbird Field, later renamed Thunderbird Field No. 1 after completion of a second field with the same name. It was located on Greenway Road and 59th Avenue in Glendale, Arizona and is today home for the Thunderbird Global School of Management.
The field was built by Del Webb in 1939 and was a business investment for several actors and producers including Jimmy Stewart.
The field was built by Del Webb in 1939 and was a business investment for several actors and producers including Jimmy Stewart.
One of the pilots at Thunderbird field who appeared as an extra in the film was an RAF trainee called Lionel Anderson. He wrote enthusiastic letters home about his experiences and his brother Gerry later said this gave him the inspiration for his Thunderbirds TV show.
The film takes place entirely in Arizona, but the theme running throughout the movie, including the party scene, is the song "Deep in the Heart of Texas."
Lady Jane Stackhouse quotes from Ralph Waldo Emerson's poem 'Boston' (1876): "For what avail the plough or sail,
Or land or life, if freedom fail?"