Julia Roberts was the 'one and only' choice for Anna Scott, though the director and producer did not expect her to accept; she initially thought the pitch sounded terrible but changed her mind after reading the script.

Casting Hugh Grant as William Thacker was unanimous, with director Roger Michell noting that Grant is one of the only actors who can speak Richard Curtis's dialogue perfectly.

Science fiction author China Miéville appeared as an extra in the film, which he jokingly described as depicting a dystopian, ethnically cleansed version of the city.

Mischa Barton has a small appearance as the child actor whom Will interviews for Horse & Hound magazine, and Sanjeev Bhaskar and Omid Djalili also make cameo appearances.

Screenwriter Richard Curtis developed the idea while lying awake at night, imagining what it would be like for an ordinary person to date an extremely famous person; Hugh Grant later claimed the story was loosely based on a real friend of Curtis's who fell for a world-famous person after meeting them in a shop.

Four Weddings and a Funeral director Mike Newell was originally approached to direct but turned it down to make Pushing Tin instead, later admitting it was the wrong commercial decision though he did not regret it.

To secure permission to film in the busy streets of Notting Hill, the location team wrote to thousands of local residents promising to donate to their favourite charity, ultimately giving money to 200 different charities.

Will's house at 280 Westbourne Park Road was actually owned by Richard Curtis, and its famous blue door was later auctioned for charity.

The production was denied permission to film the premiere scene at Leicester Square due to police concerns over crowd control, but eventually secured approval through a health and safety act and built the scene set in just 24 hours.

A reproduction of Marc Chagall's painting La Mariée was specially created for the film by artist Thomasina Smith, but the filmmakers had to agree to destroy it afterward to prevent the convincing fake from circulating in the art market.

Charles Aznavour's original version of 'She' was initially used in the film, but after poor reception from American test audiences, Elvis Costello was brought in to record a cover, with both versions appearing in non-US releases.

Notting Hill became the highest-grossing British film of all time upon release, surpassing the record previously held by Four Weddings and a Funeral, which also starred Hugh Grant.