I FELT a sense of blissful serenity among the thousands of enthusiasts at the annual London Festival of Railway Modelling event in Ally Pally on Saturday.

I was drawn into a quieter world where trains no larger than my hand traced careful paths through beautifully ornate reconstructions, including one of an imaginary “Carlton Vale” tube station.

Everything felt ordered in the smallness. It brought to mind one of the lessons from Gulliver’s Travels, that there is a strange calm to be found in observing a miniature world.
Perhaps that explains why so many are captivated by hobbying on a small scale.