PREPARATIONS for next month's Sonisphere Festival at Knebworth House are gathering pace. Around 50,000 music fans will descend on the Hertfordshire stately home for the inaugural Sonisphere spectacular on August 1-2. Promoting the forthcoming camping fest

PREPARATIONS for next month's Sonisphere Festival at Knebworth House are gathering pace.

Around 50,000 music fans will descend on the Hertfordshire stately home for the inaugural Sonisphere spectacular on August 1-2.

Promoting the forthcoming camping festival, London-based metal band The Defiled, who will play the Jagermeister stage, joined Sonisphere director Stuart Galbraith and Knebworth House's Henry and Martha Lytton Cobbold earlier today (Thursday).

Galbraith, who also organised the legendary 1996 Oasis gigs at Knebworth, said: "Sonisphere will be 50,000 people camping and the best rock music in the world."

Knebworth will be the final stop of the first European touring festival of its kind.

The two-day rock event will be headlined by nu-metal favourites Linkin Park and metal legends Metallica.

Work on preparing the festival site will start on July 20.

Galbraith added: "We've been with Metallica across Europe and I know they are looking forward to Knebworth.

"Knebworth will be the highlight of the tour!"

Thunder were added to the line-up earlier this week, as predicted by www.whtimes24.co.uk on Monday.

* See next week's Welwyn & Hatfield Times for further interviews from the Sonisphere team and a competition to win tickets for the festival.