General Entertainment What Are Your Favorite "Background Noise" Shows or Programs?

[skillzdadirecta]

Shows are Programs you put on to play in the background while you do something else or fall asleep to. This was inspired by @CitizenVectron and @ort's posts in the Seinfeld thread.

 

I USED to just have CNN on in the background while I worked but since I now work in news (at least partially) I don't want to be surrounded by the News of the Day all day. So if I'm not listening to Pandora or Spotify while I work or workout, I'll have one of several staples on in the background.

 

My goto is almost ALWAYS The Twilight Zone original series. It's my favorite show of all time and for YEARS I would turn it on before I went to sleep and fall asleep watching it. I own the box set on DVD but now thatit's on most streaming services (or has been) I can just queue it up on my service of choice.

 

My other goto is pretty much any of the classic Shaw Brothers Kung fu flicks like Five Deadly Venoms or The Kid with The Golden Arm. I own most of these on DVD and will pop one in when I can't think of anything else to watch. Some of these are streaming on Netflix and Amazon Prime though do I can watch them there.

 

Lastly there's my trashy reality TV stuff that I'll turn on the tv and turn off my brain for. Stuff like 90 Day Fiance and it's million spinoffs or true crime shit like Fear Thy Neighbor or Evils Lives Here 

 

Mind you this is stuff I put on when I just need something playing in the background. This isn't stuff Itake too seriously (except for the Twilight Zone and Shaw Brothers... I'll fight you if you talk shit about those)

 

What are some of the shows you guys have playing in the back ground. My buddy is a Law and Order guy (mixed with various Adult Swim shows) and my ex used to have Golden Girls playing in the background.

[CitizenVectron]

Our general background shows are:

 

Brooklyn Nine-Nine

Scrubs

New Girl

Bob's Burgers

(and now Seinfeld, once it hits Netflix)

 

We've gone through Friends as well, but it's too boring. Simpsons sometimes enters the rotation, too, but usually if we're falling asleep in bed.

[skillzdadirecta]

Simpsons and Aqua Teen Hunger Force are staples for me as well... so is South Park but those shows WILL distract me from what I'm doing 

[SimpleG]

Futurama is my go to. 

[ort]

Family Guy used to be perfect for this, but the new ones suck and I really soured on the show overall at some point.

 

Simpsons is good, so is Futurama... I watch hockey this way a lot.

 

Like I said before, I've been on a real Seinfeld kick lately. Which its weird because I wasn't into it all while it was on. Before about 6 months ago I had probably seen like 20 episodes in total... now I've probably seen about half the run. I'm just watching whatever my DVR grabs, but I should watch in order on Netflix.

 

I often put on Adult Swim and just let it play in the background.

[Bloodporne]

New Girl on Netflix

 

I've accidentally background-watched the entire series probably twice through at this point. I actually think the first couple seasons are legit really funny but I'll background-watch even the worst shit just because it's mildly endearing and inoffensive. 

 

I'd say Seinfeld but I have to actively watch it every time, I like it too much. 

[Chris-]

The Weather Channel is my number one, especially during morning or big storm coverage. As a toddler I was fascinated by TWC, and for whatever reason that has persisted. Others include…

 

- NOVA and Frontline on PBS

- Bob’s Burgers

- South Park

- The Simpsons

- Any kind of sporting event (as long as I like the sport)

 

Basically anything with loose continuity works. 
 

[Chris-]

Movies are a little different since I don’t go out of my way to put them on as background, but I almost never turn down the opportunity to put LOTR on whenever it’s on TBS/TNT (I forget which one has the rights). 

[Bacon]

Twitch and YouTube

[Chris-]

Twitch streams are great too, especially streamers with good chat interaction (ClintStevens and The Happy Hob being some of my favorites). 

[Fizzzzle]

If anything it'll be a twitch stream. I'm terrible at multitasking, and I'm kind of obsessive about catching every word of something if it's something I've never seen before.

 

When I still had cable, sometimes I would put TNT on or whatever channel that would show movies I've already seen a million times.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

I honestly don't have any because I MUST pay complete and total attention to any visual medium in my presence.

[Ghost_MH]

These days, PBS Kids. If I am working, I prefer silence, but I do like some background noise when I'm cleaning. That usually ends up being music or an audio book, I'm currently going through Caesar's Last Breath.

 

If it's going to be TV, maybe sometimes something like How it's Made since it's not really distracting.

[Mercury33]

Sportscenter

Food Network

Nature Shows

[SuperSpreader]

Slipknot

[EternallDarkness]

 I tend to fall asleep to Psych, no clue how many times I've gone through the series. 

[Keyser_Soze]

Remember that Pamela Anderson show VIP? That was a good show to have on in the background.

[Kamusha]

If it’s just me or another person around the house I typically only have on background music at most. Background shows is too much stimulation. But in the rare occasion that I’m entertaining multiple guest it can be fun to throw a movie on in the background, preferably something that’s visually interesting like Yellow Submarine. In college I would throw my Smashing Pumpkins and Radiohead DVDs on in the background when I would have friends over because it would doubly function as music and something to watch. But now with music video playlists on YouTube these collections are less practical to have.

[gamer.tv]

Either podcasts or favourites include Rick and Morty, The Simpson’s, Mindhunter (odd I know) or weirdly, because it was on various platforms - writing a few assignments to the movie Spotlight.

[Dre801]

Forensic Files

[Iculus]

any of the YMH podcasts.

[thewhyteboar]

I love Scrubs. It's perfect to have in the background. 

[AbsolutSurgen]

I only put things on when I want to pay attention to them.

[gamer.tv]

This thread has made me rewatch House.

[CastlevaniaNut18]

I’ve never done this. I don’t understand how so many of my patients have to have the TV on to fall asleep. 
 

If I have something on, it’s because I actually want to sit down and watch it. 

[Moa]

Really anything I've seen before. 30 Rock is my current second monitor show. 

[skillzdadirecta]

15 hours ago, CastlevaniaNut18 said:

I’ve never done this. I don’t understand how so many of my patients have to have the TV on to fall asleep. 
 

If I have something on, it’s because I actually want to sit down and watch it. 

White Noise. Some people need something to distract their brains so they can fall asleep. If they sit in silence, their minds race and they can't relax. I know several people who while they don't sleep with the TV on, they need to run their fans all night so that they can sleep regardless of how warm or cold it is. Ocean recordings work too.

[Ghost_MH]

34 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

White Noise. Some people need something to distract their brains so they can fall asleep. If they sit in silence, their minds race and they can't relax. I know several people who while they don't sleep with the TV on, they need to run their fans all night so that they can sleep regardless of how warm or cold it is. Ocean recordings work too.

 

For sleeping, I like music and my wife likes having a fan running. The sound of both don't bother me, so it works out. I'm a super light sleeper, so I need the music playing in the background or the sound of like the dog digging at her bed will wake me. Even with the music and the fan running, I'll still wake up to the sound of one of the kids coughing even through closed doors.

[CastlevaniaNut18]

2 hours ago, skillzdadirecta said:

White Noise. Some people need something to distract their brains so they can fall asleep. If they sit in silence, their minds race and they can't relax. I know several people who while they don't sleep with the TV on, they need to run their fans all night so that they can sleep regardless of how warm or cold it is. Ocean recordings work too.

That’s why I use a fan. True white noise. 

[gamer.tv]

I used to need something on to fall asleep, but my wife had none of it - so I weaned myself off of it and now fall asleep in a nice, dark room with the only sounds being wide/dog snores and the road outside.

[Kamusha]

I never got how people need the television to fall asleep. I spent the night at a friend’s house who was like this. The flashing light is just too stimulating for me personally so I could never relate. There’s plenty of good ambient music to listen to if I truly can’t fall asleep. But I guess everyone is different!

[TheLeon]

I don't have any shows that I use as pure background noise. For that I usually use podcasts, or when falling asleep I usually play an audiobook. 

 

I do have certain kinds of shows/movies that I have on while doing something like playing a game on my iPad. I usually have one sitcom or another in rotation at any given time for when I want to play some Hearthstone, for example. For most of the movies I watch, I want to put other devices away and focus on the movie as much as possible. But there are plenty of those kinda junky action movies that don't really deserve your fully attention, but are fine to half-watch while cleaning or cooking. 

[Fizzzzle]

3 hours ago, TheLeon said:

I don't have any shows that I use as pure background noise. For that I usually use podcasts, or when falling asleep I usually play an audiobook. 

 

I do have certain kinds of shows/movies that I have on while doing something like playing a game on my iPad. I usually have one sitcom or another in rotation at any given time for when I want to play some Hearthstone, for example. For most of the movies I watch, I want to put other devices away and focus on the movie as much as possible. But there are plenty of those kinda junky action movies that don't really deserve your fully attention, but are fine to half-watch while cleaning or cooking. 

There is this fucking awesome audio book of the Lord of the rings you can get for free online (I think it's a fan made thing). They edit in the score and some of the sound from the movies, it's wonderfully well done.

 

My problem is I usually don't go to bed until I'm falling asleep at my chair, so I only make it about 10 minutes before I'm asleep. It would take me 7 years to finish that series.

[TheLeon]

1 hour ago, Fizzzzle said:

There is this fucking awesome audio book of the Lord of the rings you can get for free online (I think it's a fan made thing). They edit in the score and some of the sound from the movies, it's wonderfully well done.

 

My problem is I usually don't go to bed until I'm falling asleep at my chair, so I only make it about 10 minutes before I'm asleep. It would take me 7 years to finish that series.

That might work for me. When it comes to falling asleep, I usually only listen to books I've already read (so LOTR fits). For the last few years I've mostly just been listening to the Harry Potter series on a (very slow) loop. 10-15 minutes is usually about all I need for an average night. When it really comes in handy are those shitty nights where I wake up at like 3 am and can't go back to sleep. 

[SuperSpreader]

On 9/5/2021 at 6:44 PM, CastlevaniaNut18 said:

I’ve never done this. I don’t understand how so many of my patients have to have the TV on to fall asleep. 
 

If I have something on, it’s because I actually want to sit down and watch it. 

I agree for sleeping. I do like white noise and use a fan because I also need to be in a vortex.