ONE of the south's leading high street retailers has continued its revival in fortunes - with a little bit of help from these awkward-looking fellows.

Family favourite Woolworths, which has eight stores in and around Southampton, saw a one per cent rise in like-for-like half-year sales.

The DVD and video release of the final instalment of The Lord of the Rings trilogy boosted sales of entertainment products, while electrical goods and stationery were also in demand.

Woolies, which has seen its performance star rise over the last 18 months, overcame weak demand for seasonal items such as outdoor furniture and summer clothing with strong growth elsewhere in the business.

Total sales from 803 outlets, including the flagship store at Southampton's Above Bar, increased 7.4 per cent to £1.04 billion.

It has been battling to turn around the business and improve sales after sliding more than £46m into the red nearly three years ago.

Woolies also has local branches in Southampton's Portswood, Shirley and Woolston areas, as well as Eastleigh, Romsey, Lymington and Totton.

Chief executive Trevor Bish-Jones said the group was making progress after a solid start.

He added: "We continue to be encouraged by the investment we are making in our stores and planning for the key Christmas period is well advanced."

Woolworths also operates entertainment and audio-visual publishing divisions that supply retailers such as Tesco with CDs and DVDs in addition to its own stores.

Rhys Williams, retail analyst at Seymour Pierce, forecast pre-tax profits of £78m for the year to January 31 compared with the £66.7m reported for 2003.