The editors at Debrett's identified over forty sectors of British life for the inclusion of leading figures.
Of these, the most highly populated were government, education, law, business, armed forces, diplomacy, charitable work, sports, and the arts.
An online edition of the work began to appear in July 2009,[1] when a full list of the entries was made available without payment.
"[3] From the first volume in 1988, the selection of people to be featured was made by editorial staff at Debrett's, relying on expert nomination panels.
Short biographies included details of the subject's career, education, family, recreations, membership of clubs, and contact address.