Men that make women laugh are sexy and, with a career spanning over 30 years, Woody continues to do so. Add to that his nervous disposition, self-deprecating nature and thick black glasses, and you get the thinking woman's sex symbol. And many of Woody's leading ladies have agreed; he had long relationships with Diane Keaton and Mia Farrow before shacking up with Mia's adopted daughter Soon-Yi Previn. Even Scarlett Johansson, star of Woody's latest film Match Point, named him the sexiest man in Hollywood in a recent interview.

The sex symbol that Hollywood created, Rock Hudson went from being a truck driver to movie star after being reinvented by Universal-International Pictures. Despite having very little acting experience, Hudson got by on his looks in movies like Undertow (1949), The Desert Hawk (1950) and Scarlet Angel (1952), before developing into a fine actor in roles like Magnificent Obsession (1954), Giant (1956) and A Farewell To Arms (1957). Despite being gay, the Studios forced him to live in a shame marriage, but Hudson courageously revealed all when dying of AIDS in the mid-1980s. His bravery helped society to better understand the disease and broke down barriers.

The man who made dressing up as a woman sexy, David Walliams, along with his comedy partner Matt Lucas, has become one of the most famous faces in the UK thanks to Little Britain. Walliams' ambiguous sexuality, he camps it up, dresses up, yet the tabloid tales indicate just how much he like the ladies, only adds to his attractiveness. He famously scooped Best Comedy Newcomer at the British Comedy Awards in 2003, despite the fact that he'd been working with Lucas within the scene for nearly 10 years.

The voluptuous beauty from S Club 7 raised the interest of UK males of all ages thanks to her Californian tan and predilection for showing off her toned midriff. Now a solo star, Rachel's raunchy dance moves borrow heavily from the queen of pop, Kylie Minogue, but with songs like 'I Said Never Again (But Here We Are)', Rachel proves that although she's a pop princess rather than a queen, she's got what it takes to top sex symbol polls.

One from the top. Carol Vorderman might be famed for using her mathematical brain on Countdown, but it's her sex appeal that has millions of men tuning into the show every day. Not only is she good looking though, Carol also seems to have discovered the secret of eternal youth. She doesn't appear to have aged throughout the show's 20-year run. The definition of 'thinking man's crumpet'.

Denzel Washington has been one of the sexiest men in Hollywood for nearly 3 decades now. After working in film and TV for much of the 80s, Washington hit the big time after winning a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for the historical epic Glory (1989). Since then, Denzel's powerful presence has been felt in films like Malcolm X (1992), Philadelphia (1993) and Crimson Tide (1995). He's so sexy that he even managed to seduce Angelina Jolie whilst crippled in the film The Bone Collector (1999). Hollywood still wouldn't let him kiss Julia Roberts in The Pelican Brief (1993) though, but we bet she wanted to.

There's something about the way he grills those politicians that makes Jeremy Paxman really sexy. Maybe it's the way he doesn't take no for an answer and isn't afraid to square up to even the most powerful men in Britain, but we just love him. The lead presenter of BBC Newsnight and University Challenge for years, Paxman is an institution. The fact that he's so rude to everyone on his shows only makes him sexier.

There was a time when every man in the world was jealous of Jude Law. His far too beautiful to be real face was the star of films like Gattaca (1997), The Talented Mr Ripley (1999) and Cold Mountain (2003), he was the toast of award ceremonies everywhere, and he was dating media darling Sienna Miller. One slip up with the nanny later and poor old Jude's sex symbol status was in danger of fading. Can he comeback?

John F Kennedy was more than just the president of the United States, he was an international celebrity. Handsome, charismatic, powerful and incredibly wealthy, JFK had all the qualities women find attractive, and boy did he use them. Although he may have played on his family man credentials during the campaign, Kennedy spent more time with his many mistresses than wife Jackie during his tragically short term as president. He wasn't simply chasing interns either. Kennedy's conquests included Marilyn Monroe.