FIFTY years after the Isle of Wight made history with the biggest rock festival ever staged in the UK, Experience 1970 is returning to the iconic site to mark the anniversary with a celebratory weekend festival.

Experience 1970 will honour greats including Jimi Hendrix, The Doors, The Who, The Moody Blues, Emerson Lake and Palmer.

An exciting raft of bands have already been confirmed, but major announcements are expected within weeks ­— to unveil two original rock acts from the festival roster, plus the appearance of fellow ‘70s folk rock veterans, Pentangle.

Top bands will replicate the sounds of the late great Jimi Hendrix, the 1970 headliner, and the late Jim Morrison’s band, The Doors.

Their shoes will be filled by Are you Experienced and The Doors Alive, respectively.

The Who, who played on the Island in both 1969 and 1970, will be represented by Total Who, while Free, whose All Right Now worldwide hit lit up that far-off summer, will be in the safe hands of Kossoff: The Band Plays On, who appeared at the festival anniversary gig last year.

The main performances are scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, but a third date ­— Friday evening ­— has been added to kick off the weekend festivities.

Lead organiser Chris Hewitt, whose vast collection of original IW Festival sound gear is to be featured, is excited about the original acts already lined up.

“We have the ball now well and truly rolling, and there are some great bands ready to recreate the vibe of that memorable event on the Island back in 1970,” he said.

“In addition, we are dotting the i's and crossing the t’s on agreements to bring in two of the best-loved artists of IW 1970.

"One of the acts features someone whose music lit up the following decades, so watch this space.

"We are incredibly proud to be staging Experience 1970, and delighted to be doing so on the very site where Hendrix, Morrison and co strutted their stuff back in the day.

"It will be a great weekend evoking the music of the era.”

Experience 1970’s main stage will be an exact replica of the 1970 festival stage, and an exhibition area is being championed by the Experience 70/All Wight Now group ­— the originators of the 50th anniversary events.

Tickets are expected to go on sale in February.

The festival will take place at East Afton Farm, Freshwater, from September 4 to 6.