What is quicksand and why does it frighten so many of us?
The general consensus seems to be that its all Tarzans fault. The old TV shows that were a staple of summer holiday scheduling in the Seventies and Eighties  be they the episodes from the 1960s version starring Ron Ely or the black and white movies from the 1930s with Johnny Weissmuller in the ape-man role  invariably featured, among the many jungle perils, an encounter with quicksand. Quicksand  also known as sinking sand  was a very real concern for my generation. Deep enough to get horribly killed, at the very least. Possibly even to the centre of the earth. It wasnt just Tarzan. A huge number of TV shows and movies from the Sixties to the Eighties featured quicksand as a hazard and plot device. Any time there was a bit of quick peril required, quicksand was the go-to solution, in shows ranging from Batman to the Dukes of Hazzard, the Incredible Hulk to the Lone Ranger. Quicksand even featured in Black Beauty, Little House on the Prairie, and I Love Lucy.