We have some news for you guys! Although there are a few final niggles to iron out – t-crossing, i-dotting things – we’re far enough in the booking process to inform you the exact location of the Summer of Sonic 2009. I hinted in my Twitter account that it will be somewhere to the East of Zone 1 (‘Zones’ are London Underground areas). SOS 09 will take place in the colourful marketplace of Brick Lane, at Truman Brewery’s Boiler House (that image is of the inside, with stuff in it). We have more details on the location, including a handy map, on our newly opened Where Is It page – do give it a nose.

I’m going to drop a few more hints as to what you can expect in the lead up to SOS this year – after much deliberation, this event will be free to attend, just like the initial convention in 2008. So all you have to worry about is travel and snoozing down in London, if the mood takes you.

One of the biggest things we were asked was the facility of ‘merchandise shops’ for attendees to spend, spend spend. In fact, it’s one of the things I’d really like to happen too, but unfortunately I can’t comment on whether we can do this yet in SOS 09 or not. The problem being that there are all sorts of legal and property rights issues surrounding the selling of Sonic the Hedgehog licensed products (I’m not joking – SEGA are somehow in a legal tussle to sell stuff from their own brand) so it could put a damper on things. Having said that, there’s nothing stopping license holders from attending the event, but I can’t say whether that will happen or not yet, so fingers crossed!

We’re still fumbling through our list of Special Guests, so aren’t ready to comment on anything just yet… however, I can tease that legendary game composer Richard Jacques and the lovely singer TJ Davis were said to enjoy attending Summer of Sonic 2008. If you missed out on Richard and TJ’s magnificent performance last year, there’s a chance you’ll still be able to meet them this year…

There will be a legal requirement for us to have names of those attending the Summer of Sonic in case of a fire or other emergency – a page will be created soon where you can sign your name (much like last year’s registration page, minus the threat of not getting in), so if you want to get in smoothly and quickly on the day you should let us know your name/s on the upcoming page. If you turn up on the day, all carefree like a bird, we’ll have to take your names down on the door so it might slow things down for you. Just giving you a heads up.

Specific things such as fan interaction and special things that the community will be preparing for the convention will be revealed very soon – in the meantime, give us your thoughts on these latest developments! We’re listening!

If you’re reading this right now, congratulations! You’re one of the first people to catch a glimpse of the brand new website for the Summer of Sonic convention! More content will be added over the coming days, with this page being home to the latest announcements and updates. Please check back often to find out important information on the next convention, taking place in London (UK) on August 29th 2009.

What is the Summer of Sonic?

A very warm welcome if you are new to this website! The Summer of Sonic is an annual convention for fans of Sonic the Hedgehog to meet in a single location and enjoy the flagship SEGA mascot together. This event was created by Svend ‘Dreadknux’ Joscelyne, webmaster of fansite The Sonic Stadium and professional video game journalist, and the event is co-organised and supported by SEGA Europe and, specifically, Kevin ‘AAUK’ Eva (Community Manager for SEGA Europe).

The very first convention took place in Covent Garden, London UK, in the cosy Dragon Hall community centre. Over 300 Sonic crazed fans from all over the world attended this intimate and atmospheric gathering to play classic Mega Drive games, compete for Guinness World Record titles, play Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood before its UK release, and meet legendary names in the franchise’s history, including Nigel Kitching (Writer/Artist, Fleetway Sonic the Comic), Bentley Jones (Musician, ‘Dreams of an Absolution’) and the unmistakable Richard Jacques (Sonic 3D, Metropolis Street Racer) with TJ Davis (Singer, Sonic R).

What can I do here?

This website exists to provide attendees of this year’s Summer of Sonic event with information regarding special guests, shows, stage performances and travel details. We will be providing blog updates on a regular basis, beginning June 15th 2009. We will be reaching out to the Sonic fan community to help make their mark on the Summer of Sonic – the Comments system on this website will allow you to communicate directly with us and chat to other attendees.

More details are coming soon – we have only just launched this year’s website, so please take this time to let us know what you thought of the Summer of Sonic event last year in Dragon Hall (if you were able to make it!) and what you would like to see in 2009′s event (we take on board all that we read, but obviously we can’t do everything suggested – although we might be able to do it in the future…). Speak to you soon!

~ Svend