An annual music and heritage festival in Rickmansworth will offer visitors a mix of popular local bands and rides on vintage public transport.

The waterways festival takes place on May 21 and 22 and will feature more than 20 groups of musicians on four stages, with Saturday night headlined by Abakus.

Starting proceedings on Saturday morning will be singers from the renowned Rock Choir, and the festival will come to a close with the Watford Boys Big Band on Sunday afternoon.

David Montague, festival director, said “We’re back again. The masses of people who are here every year are never disappointed, and there may well be some surprises in store too.”

As well as the busy music bill, more than 100 canal boats will be decorated, on show, and ready for the annual boaters tug of war competition, which will take place each afternoon at 2.30pm.

Finally there will be the usual fair marquee, children’s farm, medieval cooking demonstrations and on Sunday a vintage bus service from Rickmansworth station down to Batchworth Lock.

The London Transport Museum will be running heritage vehicles outings on a 1938 “Tube Stock” train, and “Sarah Siddons”, the oldest working mainline electric locomotive.

They will make journeys between Harrow-on-the-Hill, Watford, Rickmansworth and Amersham as part of the festival celebrations.

Sarah Siddons will pull carriages dating back to the 1950s and tickets for these journeys are £5 for adults and £3 for children.

The London Transport Museum Friends will also run a free vintage bus service on the iconic Routemaster bus “RM1” from Rickmansworth Station to the Rickmansworth Festival site.

On the day, volunteers will be collecting money to support the work of the event organiser Rickmansworth Waterways Trust.

The trust currently provides an education programme from the base at Batchworth Lock Centre, maintaining an old working boat “Roger” and running trips to Stockers Lock aboard the Pride of Batchworth.

For more information visit the related link below, or telephone Batchworth Lock Centre on 01923 778382.

Tickets for the trains must be booked in advance by telephoning 020 7565 7298 or visiting the related link below.