ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS: Who was the first person to coin the term 'jumping the shark'?

QUESTION: Who was the first person to coin the term 'jumping the shark', to signify that a TV show has exhausted its run?

The phrase 'jumping the shark' was coined by radio host Jon Hein in 1985.

He said it after watching an episode from series five of the TV show Happy Days that aired on September 20, 1977.

In the episode, the team visit Los Angeles , where a water-skiing Fonzie ( Henry Winkler ) demonstrates his courage by literally jumping over a shark while wearing swimming trunks and his trademark leather jacket.

This stunt was so ridiculous that it marked a clear turning point in the show's quality, indicating that the writers were running out of good ideas and resorting to increasingly bizarre situations in order to keep viewers interested.

Ron Howard (Richie Cunningham in the show) later recalled: 'I remember Donny Most (Ralph Malph) and I sitting there, looking at the script. Donny was really upset. He said, 'Oh, man, look at what our show has kind of devolved into. It's not even very funny, and you know Fonz is jumping over a shark.'

A notorious example of jumping the shark came in Dallas, after Bobby Ewing had been killed off in the final episode of series eight.

Bobby returned in the famous 'shower scene' at the end of the following season, where everything that had happened had been part of Pam Ewing's dream.

There is a related (though less successful) idiom, 'nuking the fridge', meaning to exhaust a film franchise with rubbish sequels. The phrase derives from a scene in Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull (2008), in which Indy survives an atomic bomb detonation by fitting himself into alead-lined refrigerator.

There is also a reverse phrase known as 'growing the beard', denoting when a show displays a marked improvement in depth and quality.

This came from Star Trek: The Next Generation. The first season was quite weak. However, series two showed an increased maturity in both story arc and character development.

Fans noticed that this coincided with Jonathan Frakes, who played Commander Riker, growing a beard.

Richard Hayes, Cardiff

QUESTION: Why is the Burnt Stub Mansion at Chessington World of Adventures so called?

The original mansion, Chessington Lodge, was built in 1348 as a country house.

During the Civil War between 1642 and 1651, the mansion became a stronghold for the Royalist Cavalier forces.

Oliver Cromwell's Parliamentary army burned it to the ground. After being rebuilt and restored, it was ironically named the 'Burnt Stub'.

Further reincarnations saw the building used as an alehouse and then a farm, before it was turned into a luxurious manor by the Vere Barker family in the 20th century.

Unfortunately, the mansion was once again damaged by fire. Restored in 1919, it was sold in 1931 by Sir Francis Barker to Reginald Goddard, who opened Chessington Zoo to allow the public to view his private animal collection.

Today, Burnt Stub plays host to an interactive feature called Room On The Broom — A Magical Journey, based on the books by Julia Donaldson.

Liz Patrick, Tandridge, Surrey

QUESTION: Can you actually die from a broken heart?

Yes, but it is very unlikely.

Takotsubo cardiomyopathy is a temporary heart condition that may develop in response to an intense emotional experience such as a sudden bereavement.

In this condition, there is a sudden temporary weakening of the muscular portion of the heart, causing the left ventricle to enlarge, affecting the heart's ability to pump blood effectively.

Takotsubo cardiomyopathy was identified by Dr Hikaru Sato in Japan in 1991. He called it 'Takotsubo', a word taken from the name of a pot used in Japan to catch octopuses.

The pot has a round bottom and narrow neck, thus trapping the creatures until they are pulled out by fishermen. The left ventricle, which is responsible for pumping blood out to the body, changes shape and takes on a Takotsubo-like appearance.

This condition is also known as stress cardiomyopathy, apical ballooning syndrome or broken heart syndrome.It is very unlikely that you'll die from broken heart syndrome.

Estimates of death from it range from zero per cent to eight per cent. In most cases, broken heart syndrome is a temporary condition.

Dr Ian Smith, Cambridge