Raised on farms in East Sussex in the 1930's and 1940's, Norman Allcorn was working on Westdown Farm at Burwash Common (halfway between Uckfield and Hawkhurst) by the time he was 21 in 1953.

The name Mickey Mouse has crept into the English language to mean something small and insignificant, something not to be taken too seriously. Now, Norman reveals a fascinating little tale that puts a whole new meaning on it.

'The British Friesian 'Kingswood Diekmar Judy 3rd' was none of these. She was a big, deep-bodied cow with an impressive name, and she gave a memorable amount of milk: over 50 tons in her lifetime.

I met, and milked, Judy whilst working as an assistant herdsman on Westdown Farm around 1953. The farmer, Mr Langrish-Smith, who was also a businessman, had two farms and 50 cows, and a very deep pocket.

He was trying to create a top class pedigree herd and bought the best cows that he could afford. One day he went to a cattle sale with his wife and the head herdsman Bill. The next day Bill said to me, 'Look at this cow that we bought at the Kingswood sale.'

I saw a large, white cow with three black spots almost covering her left side. They were slightly overlapping, two apart at the top and one in the middle at the bottom.

'Those spots cost us 500 guineas,' continued Bill. 'The boss was all set to drop out at 1,500 but she cost 2,000 guineas because his missus kept digging him in the ribs and saying, 'Have another bid for Mickey Mouse...... Have another bid for Mickey Mouse.''