New book imagines Eastbourne under Islamist rule following the 9/11 attacks

“One half of the book is devoted to alternative history – what Eastbourne would look like under Islamist rule following the 9/11 attacks in 2001. The other half paints a picture of contentment in Eastbourne as we know it. Both parts centre on three elderly people who meet every Friday afternoon in one of their flats to play Scrabble.

“There were several motives. Col Gaddafi made a speech in Rome in 2010 in which he predicted that the whole of Europe would eventually be taken over by Islamic control. The irony was that the speech was made in front of an audience of people who were each paid 70 Euros for the privilege of listening to him.