A former Finchley MP has topped BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour power list for 2016.

Margaret Thatcher was Britain’s first female prime minister from 1979 to 1990 and sat as MP for Finchley from 1959 to 1992.

She has found herself in the unlikely company of Bridget Jones and Beyonce, thanks to BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour Power List for 2016.

The late Conservative party leader headed the annual list, unveiled at a Buckingham Palace reception attended by Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall.

Mrs Thatcher, who died in 2013, topped the list for both her positive and negative impacts for women.

Of the country's first female leader, journalist Emma Barnett said: “Anyone born in the 80s, and thereafter, grew up thinking it was normal for a woman to run the country.

“Anyone over the age of 18 while she was in charge was shaped by her leadership style and uncompromising policies.

“In fact, a whole generation of women's feminism was formed in direct retaliation to her.”

Before the winners were announced, Camilla gave an address in which she described the programme as “a living social history charting the changing attitudes to women as well as the changing attitudes of women themselves.”

This year, the list coincides with Woman’s Hour’s 70th anniversary and sought to celebrate seven women who have made the biggest impact on women's lives since the show's launch in 1946.

A judging panel including award-winning screenwriter Abi Morgan, former Woman's Hour editor Jill Burridge and business leader Baroness Karren Brady selected the winners.

The nominees’ body of work and its impact on the lives of other women were among the qualities considered by the judges.

Brook Advisory Centres founder, the late Helen Brook, was honoured for her work on contraception and sexual health, as was late Labour MP Barbara Castle, who brought in the Equal Pay Act in 1970.

Australian writer Germaine Greer – whose famous text The Female Eunuch was published in 1970 – was fourth and attended the ceremony.

Fictional character Bridget Jones, late Grunwick strike leader Jayaben Desai and American popstar Beyonce closed out the list.

The Woman's Hour Power List launched in 2013 and featured the 100 most powerful women in the UK and Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon headed the 2015 list.

Current Finchley and Golders Green MP Mike Freer said: “Margaret Thatcher came from humble beginnings and remained humble until her death.

“However, while she was modest as an individual, her contribution was by no means modest in its impact.

“No other British prime minister other than perhaps Winston Churchill has been as widely respected by the international community as the late Lady Thatcher in the 20th Century, remaining a household name to this day.

“Her influence in domestic British politics is unquestionable.”