In the opening hang-gliding sequence, the design on the glider changes between close-ups and long shots (the long shots are of Tony Wilson himself during the actual event that is being portrayed).
In the film Tony Wilson is seen at the funeral of Ian Curtis however in real life he could not attend the funeral as he was given the task of looking after Annik Honoré, Ian's lover from Belgium, so that she would not attend the funeral and cause upset. She had come to see Ian before he flew with the band to America for the tour.
Ian Curtis' first epileptic seizure did not occur onstage, as in the film, but in the car on the way home from a Joy Division gig. This did actually happen after the band wrote 'She Lost Control', as depicted: Ian wrote the song about a service user he met in his job, who had epilepsy.
The Haçienda's last night of operation wasn't a rave night as seen in the film. It was actually a performance by the English space rock band Spiritualized. The building was used for two parties after the club officially closed.
According to Tony Wilson on the DVD commentary, the scene showing neo-fascists attending a Joy Division concert or them causing a riot, as implied by the film, never occurred.
According to Tony Wilson on the DVD commentary, there were never any gold discs in the Factory office. Wilson objected but by this stage it was too late to remove them due to continuity problems.
Yamaha NS10 studio monitors/speakers are clearly seen when camera is panning around studio as Joy Division are recording. These monitors weren't available until 1987.
In nearly every scene when Tony Wilson is in his car you can see items that were not around in the 1970-80s. Including digital satellite dishes and new style cars/buses and vans.
When Tony Wilson is driving away from his first wife at Manchester Piccadilly Station, a late 90's Fiat Bravia can be seen behind his "1980" taxed Peugeot.
When New Order is writing Blue Monday (which was first performed November 1982), the synthesizer on the left is an AKAI 7000. This model was not sold until 1986.
Whilst interviewing the old man who has worked on the canals, the camera pans around revealing Castlefield's Merchant Bridge, which wasn't constructed until 1996.