The subtitle of this distinctive orange directory reads: Featuring Investigators, Process Servers, Certified Bailiffs, Security Consultants and Many Other Related Services throughout Great Britain and Ireland. Of the 29 “many others” listed in the accompanying blurb are Witness Tracing, Insurance Investigation, Asset Tracing, Surveillance, Fit to Sue Reports, Probate and Missing Beneficiaries, Credit Card Recovery, Tracing of Debtors, and Threat Analysis(!). This “underside” of the litigation process has, thankfully, passed me by – so far – but clearly it is huge “industry”. The fact that this directory has been published annually since 1984 and currently features over 1,200 businesses is testimony to this sober fact. Shaw & Sons have been publishers for over 250 years and are well known as the publishers of Shaw's Directory of Courts in the UK (RR 2003/176), Shaw's Local Government Directory (RR 2005/132) and the NAPO Probation Directory (RR 2005/20). All these titles, like the one reviewed here, are unfussy and competently compiled. They are standards in their field.
The 1,200 entries are classified geographically by town within English county, or regions in Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Eire (there is a post‐code index to help locate agencies.) The name of the company is given with address, telephone, fax and e‐mail details, together with the type of services offered and to which professional bodies the organization or individual belongs. “100 per cent of the entries have been verified and undated as necessary” (Foreword). As well as the postcode index, there is a name index of the companies, a list of abbreviations, and one of advertisers. Abbreviations range from the ABI (Association of British Investigators Ltd.) to WIN (World Investigators Network) and include SMASO (Society of Messengers‐at‐Arms & Sheriffs Officers (Scotland)) and SPA (The Scarlet Pimpernel Association).
Page layouts are clear but the work features about a hundred advertisements for some of the companies included. In a directory of such high seriousness as this it was nice to find Excalibur Investigations, Eye Spy (Irl), Discreet Debt Recovery Ltd., Blood Ties Tracing Services, Enigma Associates, Q‐Men, and Peace of Mind Investigations!
The drawback of a geographical arrangement is that many companies operate over a wider area than that of the town of their head office – one company takes a two page advert to display a map locating their fifty or so offices throughout Greater London, while other companies may operate worldwide. Likewise, there is no index of specialities. But I guess that should you need a bailiff, security consultant, process server or a private investigator, it is useful to start near home. And I did spot an advert for the Varsity Directory of Legal Services (not Shaw & Sons this time), which contains a Subject Guide.
Outside the phone directories, this is the only directory in this speciality. It will be useful for legal and large reference libraries.
