Many years after the time period depicted in this film Marianne Foyster admitted that she was having a sexual relationship with the lodger, Frank Peerless, and that she faked paranormal incidents to cover up her liaisons.
A prominent American retail chain requested that the sex scenes in the film be re-edited to reduce their explicitness before they agreed to stock the DVD in their stores. The filmmakers complied and removed a significant amount of sexual content. The version of the film released across all Home Entertainment platforms in North America is cut by 4 minutes. The UK version was released uncut.
In the real life case Lionel and Marianne Foyster had an adopted daughter called Adelaide. She was omitted from the film.
In the real life case Reverend Lionel Foyster and his wife Marianne moved into the rectory on 16 October 1930 and left in October 1935.
The affair between Marianne Foyster and lodger Frank Peerless, which is the backbone of the film's story, has been documented in the diary of Lionel Foyster, Marianne Foyster's autobiography as well as various other interviews conducted by journalists and authors during the 1950s. The story depicted in this film is a mostly accurate portrayal of the Foysters' stay at Borley Rectory, sticking closely to the documented accounts given by Lionel and Marianne. However the conclusion of the film is entirely fictional.