Despite their preening, self-obsessed exteriors, many A-listers have proved they are more than just pretty faces by putting their time and money to worthy causes. We reveal Hollywood's most saintly celebrities

Angelina Jolie

Saintly cause
Human rights - Since becoming involved with the United Nations, the 31-year-old has started to donate a third of her income to charity, and admits: 'I have a stupid income for what I do for a living.'

Saviour's actions
Jolie has adopted three orphans, Cambodian Maddox, Zahara from Ethiopia and, most recently, a little boy called Pax Thien from Vietnam. She has also travelled extensively for the UN High Commission for Refugees and paid for mine clearance in Cambodia. She has also visited and donated towards refugee camps in Darfur in the Sudan, and on the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Top marks for
Holding a bidding war for pictures of newborn daughter Shiloh then giving the money, believed to be a total of $5 million, to charity.

Elton John

Saintly cause
Fighting AIDS - The singer gave £22.6 million to AIDS, music and children's charities in 2004 alone.

Saviour's actions
He gives a large chunk of his royalties to needy causes and urges businesses to help the fight against AIDS, having lost 60 friends, including Freddie Mercury, to the disease.

Top marks for
Setting up the Elton John AIDS Foundation, which has raised more than £20 million since it began in 1992 and has helped more than 1,000 projects to tackle HIV and AIDS in 55 countries.

Mariah Carey

Saintly cause
Impoverished kids - The diva founded Camp Mariah in 1994 to help improve education for New York kids.

Saviour's actions
She has donated more than $60,000 to the Make-A-Wish Foundation for sick kids, and is involved with the National Adoption Centre for children with special needs or from minority cultures.

Top marks for
Once escorting 100 orphans on a dream skiing holiday in Colorado.

Chris Martin

Saintly cause
Fair Trade - The face of Oxfam's Make Trade Fair campaign, he put a lot of energy into drawing attention to the appalling wages paid to farmers in the developing world.

Saviour's actions
He has worked hard to generate publicity through his band Coldplay, and has been consistently well-informed on the plight of workers. 'I've seen how rich nations like the UK exploit poorer ones through crazy trade laws,' he explains.

Top marks for
Gathering more than 30,000 signatures for Oxfam's Fair Trade petition while Coldplay toured in 2002 and 2003. He then delivered the petition, with a total of four million signatures, to the head of the World Trade Organisation.

Bono

Saintly cause
Third World debt - Nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to relieve debt in some of the world's poorest countries, the U2 singer's tireless efforts stem from what he has learned from leading experts such as Harvard economist Jeffrey Sachs.

Saviour's actions
He is modest about the work he has done over the years, calling it 'a reason to get out of bed in the morning.' He was central to Jubilee 2000, a movement to wipe out third world debt in the millennium, and has visited Africa many times to see first-hand how aid money is swallowed up by debt repayments.

Top marks for
Keeping his feet on the ground. 'I accept the absurdity of having to listen to a rock star sounding off on economic matters,' he says. 'As a performer, I understand it takes a picture of me with the Pope or a president to get debt cancellation onto the front pages.'

Leonardo Dicaprio

Saintly cause
Global warming - He has his own eco-website devoted to the dangers of climate change and also launched a campaign to raise awareness of the billions of people without access to clean water. 'Global warming is not only the number one environmental issue that we're facing today, but one of the most important issues facing all of humanity,' he says.

Saviour's actions
He produced an environmental documentary at the end of last year and is stock piling his cash to invest in good causes when the time comes. 'I hope to accumulate enough so that one day I can do something really great for other people, for the environment and for children,' he says.

Top marks for
Driving an eco-friendly electric car and helping to promote the vehicles among his A-list pals.

Pamela Anderson

Saintly cause
Animal rights - She is a spokesperson for PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) and a long-time vegetarian.

Saviour's actions
The former Baywatch babe is a forceful anti-fur campaigner, and she has even written to the Queen to stop bearskin being used on hats for the Household Guards. All the proceeds from Pammy's fan club are ploughed back into causes she believes in.

Top marks for
Lobbying Kentucky Fried Chicken to treat animals better at its factory farms and slaughter houses where birds are painfully de-beaked and scalded while still alive.

Britney Spears

Saintly cause
Sick children - The pop princess set up the Britney Spears Foundation, which helps needy children. It has funded numerous fun-filled playrooms in hospitals across the US and she is also helping create a new generation of Mouseketeers with the Britney Spears Camp for the Performing Arts for underprivileged youngsters.

Saviour's actions
'I get so much out of seeing a child's self-esteem and happiness grow through the projects I have worked on,' says Britney. 'I passionately believe in helping children in need.'

Top marks for
Her Dream Within a Dream tour, which raised $1 million for the children of victims of the 9/11 bombings.

Sandra Bullock

Saintly cause
Disaster victims - The actress gave $2 million to the American Red Cross after 9/11 and then the tsunami in 2004.

Saviour's actions
American Red Cross president Marsha Evans said Sandra was a 'model for personal generosity' after she made the whopping donation to help countries affected by the tsunami.

Top marks for
Helping a charity local to her hometown of Austin after Hurricane Katrina. Sandra organised transport to help evacuees get to new housing through Katrina Help Austin. 'Within an hour after Sandra got involved, we had five vans and a truck,' says organiser Nick Papatonis. Sandra had paid for the rented vehicles and unlimited gas and then her manager handed over the keys to organisers.