V Festival celebrated its 20^th edition over the weekend by championing British talent, organizers say.

The festival first took place in 1996 at Hylands Park, Chelmsford, and Weston Park, Staffordshire, when Pulp and Paul Weller headlined.

This year saw Kasabian and Calvin Harris play the main stage.

Festival director Simon Moran said: “We wanted to champion British talent at this year’s festival and with the likes of Calvin and Kasabian leading the way we don’t think it’ll disappoint.”

Simon Moran added the event had achieved an “incredible” amount during its two decades.

“When we started out in ’96, we were two stages and one tent, with the northern site only hosting one day of acts,” he said.

“Since then we’ve hosted some of the most iconic acts from around the world.”

The idea for V Festival reportedly came from Pulp front man Jarvis Cocker, who suggested holding an event at two outdoor locations on the same weekend and swapping bands.

Headline acts over the years have included Blur in 1997, Oasis in 2005, and The Killers in 2007, 2009, 2012 and 2014.

V festival organizers said they expected a total of 250,000 people to attend both sites over the weekend.