Talkie Toaster quotes "I toast, therefore I am." In Kryten (1988) Kryten quoted "I serve, therefore I am." David Ross, the voice of Talkie Toaster, played Kryten in that episode, before Robert Llewellyn assumed the role, when the character became a regular character in Series 3.
Ed Bye was ill during filming, so studio executive Paul Jackson came in to direct at the last minute.
Jackson has a notorious reputation for discipline on set and was extremely annoyed when the notoriously tardy Danny John-Jules arrived late for the shoot. Jules received a rather quiet dressing down from Jackson, but in front of many of the cast and crew. According to Chris Barrie, Jackson's presence alone caused the crew to suddenly double in size. Robert Llewellyn even commented on a soundman walking precariously along the gantry above the set, "risking life and limb," and various other crewmembers removing nails with their teeth and hammering in other nails with their heads, a humorous reference to the fear that Paul Jackson struck into the hearts of the crew.
The new super intelligent Holly was visioned as having a bald head and small spectacles. This was changed to just having her hair smoothed back. To film the new look Holly (Hattie Hayridge) was filmed in front of blue-screen wearing a blue polo-neck. This allowed her disembodied head to be superimposed to the episode footage.
Red Dwarf had been subject to a significant power drain in Me² (1988), when projecting two holograms of Rimmer. However, this is the only episode of the show where all the non-essential systems of the ship are shut down, running on emergency back-up power and leaving the crew helpless. It is established that, without the main engines providing electricity (that is powered indefinitely by the front ram-scoop), Red Dwarf can run on the solar panels and battery-back up, but only for a few months.
Extensive model work was done for the "pool with planets" scene that never made the broadcast episode for timing reasons.
However, these excised model shots can be seen in the special features on the Series IV DVD. The extended model shots include more of the solar flare, and before that the experimental nuclear missile being fired into the star from a small launcher on the hull of Starbug in close-up, which was not seen in the broadcast episode.