Gaming tycoon Ian Livingstone: I used to be branded satanic, however lecturers cherished my books

D&D finally grew to become too in style for Games Workshop to carry on to, so that they made their very own model as a substitute: the miniatures wargame Warhammer. In some methods, it was the anti-D&D: the place Dungeons & Dragons was earnest and American, Warhammer had a deeply British sense of subversive humour and a snotty punk-rock spirit. Warhammer shortly outgrew D&D and has propelled Games Workshop to annual earnings of greater than £100m (exceeding £270m in 2026). Its numerous superstar followers embrace South Park co-creator Trey Parker, pop star Ed Sheeran and, most importantly, former Superman Henry Cavill, who’s engaged on a TV adaptation of the Warhammer 40K sci-fi model of the sport for Amazon.

Livingstone bought his stake in Games Workshop in 1991 as a part of a £10m buyout, and the corporate is at present value an estimated £6bn. “Some might say we sold a little bit early,” he has stated. “But no regrets…” He went on to change into govt chairman of Eidos and is now a normal accomplice at Hiro Capital, which invests in video video games and e-sports (aggressive video gaming). He gained’t be drawn on his internet value at present, however given the blockbusting reputation of each Tomb Raider and Fighting Fantasy – and the magnificence of his board recreation assortment – he’s clearly doing all proper.

In that regard, he’s all too uncommon – a geek with an excellent enterprise head. Contrast his success with the disaster-prone D&D creator Gary Gygax, whose horrible enterprise acumen price him management of the model and led to his ousting from his personal firm.

“I didn’t go to university, because I was a bit of a non-conformist at school,” he explains. Instead he did a diploma in enterprise research at Stockport College of Technology – “So when we started Games Workshop, at least I’d had that training. Even though I’m a creative person myself, to have that understanding of business was quite important.”

Livingstone can also be that uncommon nerd acknowledged by the institution. He was knighted in 2022, a yr after he helped set up The Livingstone Academy in Bournemouth, which caters to kids aged 4 via to 19; champions games-based studying; and options online game design as a part of its computer systems course. “We are arguably one of the most creative nations in the world,” he says, explaining the philosophy behind the college. “Why would you not want to invest in our creativity more? So, a good arts education is key, not as a sort of nice-to-have, lovey-dovey thing.”