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The one thing I like about Mike Ashley.

Obviously not the way he runs Sports Direct, in the manner of a cruel Victorian mill owner. Or the way he runs Newcastle United. He cynically invests just enough to keep them in the Premier League, so the TV and sponsorship millions keep rolling in. But he refuses to spend those millions on players who might bring some glory to this wonderful club. However I do like the stupendous display of Christmas lights on his house in Totteridge. I’ve just driven past and once again, for sheer wattage, they rival Regent Street. Ashley’s £25 million mansion was originally built for pop impresario Mickie Most. This was his first production and it went straight to No.1. If, like Herman’s Hermits, Hot Chocolate, Mud, Suzi Quatro, Lulu, Donovan or Jeff Beck, you were produced by Mickie Most, you were into something good. Unlike those poor, unfortunate souls toiling away at Sports Direct.

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