Angelina Jolie has been named as the most powerful celebrity in the world by Forbes magazine in its annual poll.

The 34-year-old actress knocked US talk show host Oprah Winfrey, who has held the top spot for the past two years, into second place.

Forbes senior editor Matthew Miller, explaining that the magazine took into account earnings as well as fame, said: “In addition to nearly doubling her earnings in the past year, from $15 million to $27 million, Angelina Jolie is the most famous star on the planet.

“She is in the dialogue of popular culture nearly every day - for her acting, for her relationship with Brad Pitt, for her children and for her philanthropic endeavours. All of this exposure leads to an extremely powerful celebrity brand - one that allows her to command a higher salary when starring in movies, can bring more people to the theatre and one that she can monetise further if she chose to do so.”

Madonna jumped from 21st position last year to third, after making $110 million thanks to her world tour and her split from husband Guy Ritchie, together with rumoured romances with baseball star Alex ‘A-Rod’ Rodriguez and model Jesus Luz, ensured she was never far from the public eye.

Other notable inclusions include 16-year-old ‘Hannah Montana’ actress Miley Cyrus at number 29, rapper 50 Cent at number 50 and Drew Barrymore who took the 87th spot, with Barack Obama becoming the first US President to ever appear on the list, coming in at number 49.
 
Forbes' annual Celebrity 100 Power List top 10:
 
1. Angelina Jolie
2. Oprah Winfrey
3. Madonna
4. Beyonce Knowles
5. Tiger Woods
6. Bruce Springsteen
7. Steven Spielberg
8. Jennifer Aniston
9. Brad Pitt
10. Kobe Bryant

Photos: Gallo Getty Images