John Finch states that he only wrote the original treatment as a ruse to be invited to the annual Granada conference where new drama ideas were discussed. He was surprised that his idea was almost the only one discussed. Granada was noted for avoiding lavish costume drama, but liked the concept of a drama based around less expensive studio-based domestic interiors with a minimum of location shooting.
The Spanish Civil War scenes were filmed on the Derbyshire Moors while the Western desert scenes were filmed on the sands at Formby near Liverpool,
The theme music is the First Movement (Allegro) of Ralph Vaughan Williams' Sixth Symphony.
The initial title was "Conflict", reflecting family tensions as well as world events.
Due to a union action by TV technicians, episodes Giving and Taking (1971) (2.12) to A Separate Peace (1971) (2.19) were made in black and white as a protest over pay.
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