Metallica have been announced as the first heavy rock act to headline Britain's Glastonbury festival.

The group will fill the summer music event's vacant headline slot on 28 June (14) and join Kasabian and Arcade Fire as the main draws for the iconic weekend festival in Somerset, England.

The gig will mark Metallica's debut appearance at Glastonbury, and serve as a warm-up for the band's Sonisphere festival appearance at Knebworth Park, England in July (14).

Confirming the news on Thursday (08May14), festival founder Michael Eavis told the Bbc, "They wanted to play for a long, long time and they're one of the most amazing rock bands in the world; everywhere I go people say, 'When are Metallica going to play?' I said, 'They will be here one day', and this is their time now."

Drummer Lars Ulrich says, "I feel ecstatic. We've been waiting for this phone call for years."

Among the hundreds of acts set to perform at Glastonbury this summer, alongside the headliners, are Dolly Parton, De La Soul, Manic Street Preachers, Yoko Ono, Jake Bugg and Ed Sheeran.