If you happen to live in or near London, England, or if you can afford a ticket there, you might consider taking in Tales of Fantasy and the Final Frontier, a lecture which will be given by Richard Garriott at Queen Mary University of London.

From the event page:

Date: 6:30PM, 14 December 2011
Venue: ArtsTwo Lecture Theatre, Mile End Campus

British born Richard Garriott is an award-winning computer game developer, entrepreneur, philanthropist, adventure traveler and space explorer. Drawing inspiration from his parents, scientist Owen a NASA astronaut, and Helen, a professional artist, he began designing computer games at high school. This passion, blending art and science, drives a career that has earned him legendary status in the games industry. Richard’s Ultima series of role-playing games, with themes of adventure, virtues and exploring portals to other worlds remains one of the most successful franchises in gaming history, and created the multiplayer game genre through the groundbreaking technology of Ultima Online.

This work resulted in numerous awards including admission into The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame and a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Game Developers Choice Awards.

If I had to guess, the lecture will focus on both Garriott’s history in gaming innovation and his voyages into space, though I would expect that he’ll devote more than a bit of time to his current initiative, Portalarium and social gaming. The presentation itself is, evidently, free, but it must be booked in advance. Click through to the event page to find a booking link!