The results were dominated by uninhibited, confident women such as the Bond babes; with the ultimate bikini icon of all time being Ursula Andress stepping out of the sea in the Bond Film Dr No with 21% of the votes. She was closely followed by another Bond babe, Halle Berry with 10%, holding the number two slot in joint place with Marilyn Monroe.

Results hinted that people seem to consider the healthier, more rounded female form to be the most attractive in a bikini with Pamela Anderson, Jane Fonda and Bo Derek all coming top of their respective decades. "The image of Ursula is iconic and has impressed generations of men and women for several decades - however, it seems that the new way to show your body confidence is to go completely nude in some cases! Maybe in 20 years time we might consider the bikini as being really prudish - the same way that the Victorian bathing suit is now viewed!," comments Lisa Rodwell, Marketing Director of Yahoo! Search.

Bikini icons over the decades: 1950s Marilyn Monroe
1960s Ursula Andress
1970s Bo Derek
1980s Jane Fonda
1990s Pamela Anderson
2000s Halle Berry