The first 100 Sexiest Women list was published in 1995, and was compiled exclusively by a panel of 250 judges. German supermodel
Claudia Schiffer topped the inaugural chart. The following year's poll was the first to be opened up to the general public. A total of 10,000 votes were cast, with American actress
Gillian Anderson being announced as the winner in September. A spokesman for
FHM described her as the "thinking man's crumpet" and a "surprise winner". Anderson had posed half-naked on the front cover of the magazine earlier that year. onto the
Palace of Westminster.|alt=Colour photograph of a naked image of Gail Porter projected onto the Palace of Westminster in 1999 Over subsequent years, the list's popularity continued to grow. The 1998 poll was voted on by half a million readers, with its companion issue being sold sealed inside a plastic cover.
Martin Daubney, a former features editor of
FHM, noted that it added a "sense of mystique and occasion" to the issue, which went on to sell 936,000 copies. The issue's
cover girl was British TV presenter
Cat Deeley, who had placed at number seven; the 100 Sexiest winner was
Playboy model
Jenny McCarthy. The following year,
FHM publicists promoted the poll by projecting a 60 ft naked image of British TV presenter
Gail Porter onto the front of the
Palace of Westminster. A
FHM spokesman remarked: "We want to up the voting frenzy for the poll ... It is a cheeky way of increasing interest." Porter was placed at number eight in the chart that year, while American actress
Sarah Michelle Gellar was number one. The first person to top the 100 Sexiest Women list more than once was American singer
Jennifer Lopez, who placed at number one in both 2000 and 2001. Speaking about being named the sexiest woman in the world for a second year running, Lopez said that she was "overwhelmed" and added: "Any woman who says they don't like being called sexy, they're lying." By 2002, the list was attracting more than five million votes – that year, Russian tennis player
Anna Kournikova was number one. A further five million votes were cast the following year, when American actress
Halle Berry was named as the world's sexiest. At 36 years old, Berry was the oldest woman to top the list. She responded: "Wow, that's a pretty heady title. I'm not so sure I live up to it, but thank you anyway." The first British woman to top the listing was the model
Kelly Brook, who was named the world's sexiest in 2005, the most successful poll to that point. , Brook has been featured in the top ten of
FHM 100 Sexiest Women ten times, which is more than any other entrant. The 2011 list was noted for featuring an androgynous male model,
Andrej Pejić, who was voted at number 98 on the poll (Pejić later came out as a trans woman in 2013 and changed her name to Andreja).
FHM caused controversy when the entry's accompanying
blurb warned its readers to "pass the sick bucket" and described Pejic as a "thing". Following a backlash,
FHM removed the text from their website, spoke directly with Pejić and issued a public apology, saying that the online entry "wasn't subbed prior to going live". The final 100 Sexiest Women poll to be voted for by the public was published in 2015, before
FHM went out of print in January the following year. The list included its oldest entrant ever, 80-year-old food writer
Mary Berry, who was placed at number 74, while the sexiest woman that year was British actress
Michelle Keegan. Speaking in November 2015 as
FHM suspended its print publication, a spokesman reflected that the poll was what the magazine was best known for, and that it had "helped propel the careers of many well-known actresses, musicians and models". Subsequent 100 Sexiest Women lists have been compiled by
FHM writers themselves, and have been published on FHM.com. , the most recent winner is
Gal Gadot. ==100 Sexiest Women winners==