A competition inspired by the 70th anniversary of George Orwell's novel 1984 has inspired some grim visions of the future from talented writers in the area.

The competition was organised by Slough Writers, a supportive group for budding authors living in and around the town.

The stories submitted were judged by Eton College academic Dr Anna Camilleri in recognition of Orwell’s attendance at Eton from 1917 to 1921.

Entrants has been asked to come up with stories imagining what the future would be like.

Slough man Andrew Unsworth won first prize with his tale A Burden Eased - tackling the painful subject of coerced suicide. He imagined a future where the elderly are persuaded to ‘ease the burden’ of care on their family and society by dying gracefully on live TV.

Doctor Camilleri, who currently teaches English at Eton, said of Andrew’s winning story, said: “The idea of publicly executing people on live TV is a really compelling concept. Very Charlie Brooker-esque. It was the one I kept returning to as I read through the entries.”

Second place went to Robert Kibble’s story No Law Against It, which focused on the reduction of police presence on the streets leading to total indifference towards crime.

Third place was awarded to Elaine Simmonds’s story ‘Isolde’, an intriguing tale of objectivity versus treachery.

Slough Writers meet Monday nights upstairs at the Palmer Arms pub in Dorney at 7.30pm.