A BIZARRE tale of a dead king plotting to regain his kingdom has won this year's Windsor Fringe Festival International Kenneth Branagh Award for new drama writing.

The annual competition forms the climax of the fringe and this year's was the 15th.

It attracted 301 entries from 24 countries - with the three finalists' works being performed over three nights at the Old Court in St Leonards Road.

There had been 45 volunteer readers working their way through all the plays to reach the final three. Saturday was the big night when audiences who had watched the three learned who judges Pete Gallagher and Joan Lane had picked as the winner.

Waiting for Hamlet was the first play written by the winner - David Visick from East Sussex. It told of an exiled king lost in the wilderness with only an old fool for company and plotting his return to power, despite being dead.

Mr Visick is a director of communications but describes himself as a serial dabbler, having written songs, then children’s stories, then a blog ( My Homework Ate The Dog) and a book (Farrow & Ball will be named in Our Divorce).

He received his £500 prize from Fringe chairman Karen Darville.

The runners-up whose works were also performed over the three nights were Jeff Nolan and Kevin McMahon.

Mr Nolan's play Cut ansd Paste was about a prime minister in crisis, facing prosecution for war crimes, a rebellious cabinet and an affair about to be exposed.

Mr McMahon's The Claykickers' Chorus told of a team of sewage workers used in 1916 to tunnel under the Somme, facing death any minute.

This year's Fringe has seen more than 40 events staged in 19 different venues in Windsor, including two schools, a pop up music venue at the Windsor Hospice Furniture Shop, the Loading Bay Cafe and Windsor and Eton Brewery.

It has featured theatre, art, comedy, music, DJ nights and Fado, welcoming local, national and international talent.