Model railway maker Hornby outshone troubled real-life operator Railtrack yesterday as it signalled a 52 per cent jump in first half profits.

The toy firm toasted a ''renaissance'' in the popularity of model railways and its Scalextric slot-car racing game for the strong performance.

Chief executive Frank Martin added the early success of a new Harry Potter train set meant he was quietly confident of a good Christmas.

The Hogwarts Express train set has been launched to coincide with the release of the film and Mr Martin said the product was ''flying off the shelves''.

''The Railtrack shareholders would have been better off putting their money in Hornby,'' he said.

Sales across the Margate group surged to £10.6m in the six months to September 30, up 14 per cent on the same period last year.

The lift helped Hornby generate a pre-tax profit of £794,000, which compares with £524,000 a year ago.