Handout image shows the cover of TIME magazine.[AFP]

US President George W. Bush has been dropped from Time magazine's list of the world's 100 most influential people for the first time, in a further sign of his flagging political fortunes.

While Osama bin Laden, Pope Benedict XVI and even Borat creator Sacha Baron Cohen managed to find a spot on the fourth annual list due to hit newsstands Friday, the magazine decided that Bush just didn't make the grade any more.

"I think Bush by this point in his presidency probably has less influence than the position should grant him automatically," Time's Deputy Managing Editor Adi Ignatius told AFP, explaining the decision to ditch Bush.

"He's a lame duck ... but his influence is below that of a normal lame duck figure. We just thought Bush was at a low ebb in terms of his influence."

However, plenty of other politicians, notably Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama (news, bio, voting record), managed to squeeze into a packed and varied field of entertainers, philanthropists, sportsmen and entrepreneurs.

The "artists and entertainers" category includes Hollywood heavyweights Martin Scorsese, Cate Blanchett and heart-throbs Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio, along with fashion model Kate Moss.

Pop sensation Justin Timberlake is named along with Senegalese musician Youssou N'Dour, while former US vice president Al Gore's shift to environmental campaigner got him nominated in the "scientists and thinkers" category.

The list, which is designed to recognize "the men and women whose power, talent or moral example is transforming our world," does not appear in any order or give the magazine's reasons why some people were chosen over others.

The "leaders and revolutionaries" category features Queen Elizabeth II, Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni -- in an entry penned by US counterpart Condoleezza Rice -- and Rice herself, appearing for a fourth year running.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger makes a showing next to Raul Castro, the younger brother of Cuban leader Fidel Castro, Indian Congress Party leader Sonia Gandhi and Chinese President Hu Jintao.

Other politicians in the mix include German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi (news, bio, voting record) and Liu Qi, head of the 2008 Beijing Olympics committee.

Besides Rice, US talk show host Oprah Winfrey is the only person to have appeared all four years, featuring in the "heroes and pioneers" section in an entry written by anti-apartheid campaigner Nelson Mandela.

Other "heroes" include billionaire investor and philanthropist Warren Buffett, rubbing shoulders with tennis champion Roger Federer, footballer Thierry Henry and Chinese online activist Zeng Jinyan.