Trivia / Educating Rita

• Actor-Inspired Element: Julie Walters said she changed Rita a little bit to how she'd played her on the stage - "I made Rita a bit rougher around the edges and toned my performance down".
• California Doubling: The film was shot in Ireland, and Trinity College in Dublin stood in for Frank's college. Notably at the train station, there is an unusual black rectangle above the word 'platform' on the sign - which is to cover up the Irish word "Árdán" (as all the signs in Ireland are bilingual).
• Creator's Favorite Episode: Michael Caine considers this his best performance.
• The Danza: The film has actor Marcus O'Higgins playing a character called Marcus.
• Darkhorse Casting: Julie Walters had numerous television and theatre credits (including the original play), but this was her first film role.
• Dawson Casting: Rita is twenty-six and the film covers a year. Julie Walters was in her early thirties, though she had been the same age as Rita when she first played her on the stage.
• Dyeing for Your Art: Michael Caine gained thirty pounds to play Frank in the film. He also grew a beard, because the original Frank on the stage - Mark Kingston - had sported one in the 1980 production.
• Fake Brit:
  • Irish actress Jeananne Crowley as the very English Julia. Brian's wife Elaine was also played by an Irish actress Dearbhla Molloy.
  • There are numerous bit characters played by Irish actors doing attempts at English accents. A few don't bother, but that can be justified - as Britain had a large amount of Irish immigrants in the 70s and 80s.
• Production Posse: The same team on this movie reunited to make Shirley Valentine six years later.
• The Red Stapler: A general example. Julie Walters has said that many women came up to her afterwards and said the film inspired them to get an education.
• Self-Adaptation: Willy Russell, who wrote the original play, also worked on the screenplay for the film adaptation.
• Sleeper Hit: A British film made for only £4 million ended up making nearly four times its budget, becoming a hit in America and getting three Academy Award nominations. What's more is that Michael Caine was the only notable name in it.
• Star-Making Role: The film's success and the subsequent BAFTA win made Julie Walters a household name. Beforehand she had only done stage work and small parts on television, but she enjoyed a much higher profile afterwards.
• Stunt Casting: Producers really wanted Julie Walters to reprise her role as Rita from the stage version. They weren't able to cast her until they got Michael Caine on board - as he was considered a bankable star.
• Typecasting: Michael Caine played an alcoholic in Beyond the Limit that same year as well.
• What Could Have Been:
  • The studio was considering relocating the film to America, with Paul Newman and Dolly Parton in the leads. Lewis Gilbert had seen Julie Walters in the role on stage and was determined to have her as Rita. Once they got Michael Caine - a bankable star - they were able to cast Julie.
  • There was talk of an American remake in 2002 with Denzel Washington and Halle Berry as Frank and Rita. As a Cultural Translation, it would have had a black girl from the ghetto trying to get an education.
  • Before Julie Walters was cast, there were reports that Julie Christie would play the lead. Whether this was just a typo is unknown.
  • Maureen Lipman was said to have replaced a 'name' actress who dropped out of the role of Trish.

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