LOS ANGELES • Could Jon Snow be alive after all?

A teaser for Game Of Thrones gave hope to legions of fans on Monday by suggesting the HBO mediaeval saga's fan favourite may be back in Season Six.

The television series tweeted a teaser poster on Monday with a partial shot of Snow's rugged, blood-stained face and trademark shoulder-length hair, with the simple caption: "April".

The sixth season will air in April next year.

It is the first time the series has officially acknowledged the future of Snow, the heroic soldier played by British actor Kit Harington, 28.

Snow was seemingly stabbed to death by mutinous followers at the end of the fifth season, which closed with an image of him falling bloodied into a ditch.

On Monday, the poster sent fans on social media into overdrive. The tweet was shared more than 35,000 times in three hours on Monday and "Jon Snow" became the top Twitter trend.

The Emmy-winning series, based on George R.R. Martin's fantasy novels, is a sweeping epic about a battle across seven kingdoms for the Iron Throne.

It is HBO's most-watched series, averaging 20 million viewers an episode this year.

Fan speculation about Snow's fate has been prompted by sightings of Harington on set in Ireland and his decision not to cut his brown locks.

Little slips from other cast members in interviews have also fuelled the fire, but HBO and the show's creators have enjoyed toying with fans, always avoiding the question and keeping Harington away from fan events.

Back in July, director David Nutter told Entertainment Weekly that United States President Barack Obama himself asked him about Snow's fate when they met recently.

"He turned to me, put his hand on my shoulder and said, 'You didn't kill Jon Snow, did you?'

"I said, 'Jon Snow is deader than dead,'" said Nutter.

AGENCE FRANCE- PRESSE, REUTERS