In real life, Lady Elizabeth Murray married first to George Finch-Hatton, 10th Earl of Winchilsea. Their great-grandson was Denys Finch Hatton, who was played by Robert Redford in Out of Africa (1985).
The Zong massacre case, known officially as Gregson v. Gilbert (1783), was not the landmark, pro-abolition decision this movie portrayed it to be. It avoided the issue of slavery altogether, and never actually reached a final decision. Lord Chief Justice William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, called for another trial which never came to court. It is assumed that the matter was settled privately. Lord Mansfield presided over an earlier case that became very important to the abolitionist movement. In Somerset v. Stewart (1772), Lord Mansfield concluded that slavery could only be legal through statute, and since such statute did not exist, there was no legal basis for slavery in England and Wales. This movie steals a line from Somerset v. Stewart and uses it in Gregson v. Gilbert to use the wider implications of Somerset v. Stewart for dramatic effect. In the film, Lord Mansfield's judgment shows that there was enough evidence to suggest that the slavers committed fraud, and that Lord Mansfield personally disliked the idea of slavery. He says nothing about the legality of slavery in England and Wales, nor the legality of insuring humans as cargo.
An early version of the script was called "Belle and Bette", and focused on the relationship between Dido and her cousin Elizabeth.
In real life, Dido's father, Sir John Lindsay left a one-off sum of £1,000 to his 2 other illegitimate children and nothing to Dido. Five years later when Dido was 32, Lord Mansfield left her £500 in his will and an annuity of £100 (equivalent to around £12,000 in 2023), "Better than a slap in the face, but not what the 18th century would have considered an heiress." While, Lord Mansfield left Lady Elizabeth £10,000 and £7,000 from her father (equivalent to around £2,040,000). His 2 nieces Marjory and Anne Murray (Lady Elizabeth's spinster aunts) was given £11,000 each. Later, Marjory and Anne would leave majority of their fortune to Lady Elizabeth making her in total heiress of £40,000 (equivalent to £4,800,000). Marjory further left £100 in her will, and Anne left £50 to each of Dido's sons.
The credits cite David Gant as playing Johan Zoffany in the role of the artist who paints the famous portrait of Dido and Elizabeth, but many art experts now believe the work is by David Martin in the style of Zoffany. In 2017, the painting was owned by the Mansfield family and on view at their home, Scone Palace in Perth, Scotland.