Iron Maiden will headline next year's Download Festival

Iron Maiden have been unveiled as the headline act for next year's Download Festival.

The heavy metal rockers will top the bill on Saturday 15 June 2013.

The gig will see them bring their Maiden England tour to Donington Park on the 25th anniversary of their first headline appearance.

German metal band Rammstein have also been announced as headliners on 16 June, the first time they've played the venue.

In 1988, Donington's highest attendance, 107,000 people, turned out to see Iron Maiden's Seventh Son show.

Bruce Dickinson, the band's lead singer, said: "We're over the moon to be headlining Donington again.

"The idea of returning exactly 25 years later... was too good an opportunity to be missed."

A new deposit scheme has been launched for 2013 which will allow festival-goers to pay in instalments for the first time.

More than 100,000 people attended this year's Download when Black Sabbath headlined on the Sunday.