6th March Update: All comments have been wiped with the site’s recent server crash. We still have a count of all the people who took the time to write a comment showing their interest. So as not to mess up our ballpark figure, if you have already written in this post before the server wipe please do not so so again. If you do, please let us know you have already posted before. Thanks!

Last year, The Sonic Stadium held, with support from SEGA Europe and Sonic Wrecks, the world’s first Sonic the Hedgehog fan convention in London’s Covent Garden. With a playable demo of Sonic Chronicles, the Guinness Book of Records adjudicating Sonic 2 times, a special song from Dreams of an Absolution singer Lee Brotherton, signings from Sonic the Comic’s Nigel Kitching and a performance from TJ Davis and Richard Jacques (!), the Summer of Sonic metamorphasised overnight from a quaint little British meetup to an internationally recognised, had-to-go-there event.

And as you may already know, we’re doing it all again this year. Only bigger.

I can reveal right now that the confirmed date for the next Summer of Sonic will be Saturday 29th August 2009. The venue has not been finalised, but it will be situated in London, UK.

What I want to know is how many of you will come to SoS 09 on this date.

The reasons I ask this are pretty straightforward, if you knew that we had to turn many people away from the event in 2008. The demand far outstripped the capacity of the poor community hall that we had hired for the day. In a space suited for 200, the Dragon Hall Covent Garden saw 300 Sonic-crazed people flock through their doors. Had we not restricted entry on the Summer of Sonic website, and fully promoted the event in the media as we originally planned, who knows how many people would have showed up.

So what we’re doing here is getting a sample of interested people so we (that’s the Summer of Sonic organisation staff – consisting of myself and AAUK of SEGA Europe for now) can get an idea of how big a hall we can squeeze out of our budget. All you need to do is post a comment stating how many in your household are able to come to this event on the 29th August.

While I can’t reveal anything in regards to what will actually be there this year, here’s some information that will whet your appetite – Jun Senoue knows of Summer of Sonic. Richard Jacques said he would happily attend another SoS. You couldn’t stop Lee Brotherton from getting involved again. Sonic Team’s reaction to SoS 2008 was also reported to be very positive, and SEGA Europe as a whole are both very keen to be more involved yet very respectful as to this being about a fan gathering rather than a buck generator.

This, coupled with the success of Covent Garden last year, should be an indication that there will be at least several things at SoS 2009 to get super-excited about.

So – London, United Kingdom. Saturday 29th August 2009. Who’s able to come? Spread the word!