James Mason replaced Paul Scofield whose leg was broken in an accident with a horse-drawn carriage during filming, and production was delayed six weeks. The last scene that was filmed before breaking was an extended version of the cuff link scene.
Final theatrical movie of James Mason (Sir Randolph Nettleby), who died shortly after principal photography wrapped.
Website Wikipedia states: "According to the DVD extras documentary, on the first shoot of the first day of filming, all of the male lead actors, including Paul Scofield, who was playing Sir Randolph Nettleby, were to come into shot on a horse-drawn shooting-brake driven by the well-known movie horse master George Mossman. However, as they turned the first corner, the brake-plank on which Mossman was standing broke in two, and Mossman was hurled forward and down, falling between the sets of wheels, taking the reins with him. He was struck by a horse's hoof and concussed. The horses then shied and broke into a gallop. Rupert Frazer admitted that he was the first to jump off, landing safely, but bruised. Now out of control, the horses turned to the right when confronted by a stone wall causing the shooting-brake to roll completely, catapulting the actors into a pile of scaffolding that had been stacked next to the wall. Robert Hardy stood up and realized to his amazement that he was unhurt. He looked across to see Edward Fox stand up, 'turn completely green and collapse in a heap'. He had broken five ribs and his shoulder blade. He then noticed that Paul Scofield was lying very still on the ground, 'and I saw that his shin-bone was sticking out through his trousers'. As the movie takes place in October due to the partridge-shooting season, the filmmakers had to make a choice to either delay filming for a year, or re-cast."
Nigel Havers was originally cast as Lionel Stephens, but the movie was delayed after some of the cast were injured in a riding accident. When filming resumed, Havers was unable to appear, owing to a commitment to A Passage to India (1984).
This movie is not an adaptation of Anton Chekhov's "The Shooting Party" (1884). It is is an adaption of Isabel Colegate's "The Shooting Party" (1980).