Unlike most versions of the play, the actress cast to play Juliet was similar to Juliet's actual age. In the play, Juliet is only thirteen, but in most plays and adaptations, a girl in her late teens or early twenties plays the role. Rebecca Saire was only fourteen when she made this movie.
During publicity for this movie, Rebecca Saire gave several interviews in which she criticized Director Alvin Rakoff, stating that in his interpretation, Juliet is too childlike and asexual, much to the horror of the producers, who cancelled several scheduled interviews with the actress in the lead up to the broadcast.
Part of the long-running BBC Television Shakespeare project, which ran between 1978 and 1985.