The adventure of Audrey Hepburn's Princess Ann (whose country of origin is never mentioned) is said to have been inspired by the real-life rebellious romance of Britain's Princess Margaret, younger sister of Queen Elizabeth.

Elizabeth had been crowned just a year previous to the film's 1953 release, and so a certain amount of royal fever was in the air. Also in the air was plenty of talk about Margaret's forbidden romance with married war hero, and commoner, Peter Townsend. They reportedly fell in love while Margaret was on a tour of the world, much like the fictional Ann.

The producers gained access to the amazing, historical sets just by showing up on location -- shooting everything in the ancient city of Rome meant tripping over regality every step of the way.

"Filming in Rome in those days was marvellous," said director William Wyler to his biographer, Jan Herman. "For every scene I could have had six locations, and each one was better than the other."

The external scenes were all on location, but of course getting permission to shoot outside is easier than inside. Most of the interior scenes in the film were made in a studio, though even that was pretty spectacular: the huge and legendary production facility Cinecitta.

Though Rome was on the list of cities Princess Margaret visited during her 1940s globetrotting tour, it was reportedly during a tour of South Africa when she fell in love with Townsend.

Their romance lasted for years before, in 1955, Margaret announced that she would not marry the now-divorced Townsend -- a marriage that would have been unacceptable by the very traditional standards of the Royal Family.

Have a question? Email us at questions@tvtabloid.com. Please include your name and town. Personal replies will not be provided.