TV on or off with visitors

lazer

I agree it's rude to have it on when people are visiting - I would almost always turn mine off.

Exceptions -
My own parents - in fact my mum comes to visit and puts the TV on to watch the soaps.

If people are staying for extended period (ie - overnight) then we would soemtimes watch TV in the evening and if they want to put it on they can

If I'm having people round for drinks before headign out - the music channels will probably be on.

I cna't stand going to visit people and they leave the TV on and spend half the time watching it or discussing the program with you etc.

duchy

I don't regard parents as "visitors" though

hazyjo

On (in the minority!). But then mine's a very relaxed house with informal visits. If say a couple are over to stay, we'll be in the dining room with no telly but there'll definitely be music on. After we've been out to dinner or eaten in, we may head in the lounge to watch a film.

If a friend pops round (rare), we'll sit in the lounge talking with the telly on in the background although not really watching it.

If I'm at my sisters, we'll ALWAYS be in the lounge first with the telly on (her 3 kids, partner and my mum, me and BF).

If my mum comes to mine, we'll have music/radio on and stay in the kitchen/diner (no telly in there).

Got a friend staying in a couple of weeks for 3 nights and I know we'll be watching lots of telly as we like the same stuff and will be quite happy watching it with our 'comfies' on. It's a very cosy laid back house and I can't imagine sitting there chatting with no background noise other than the tick tock of the clock!

Jx

London_Town

I've found it very interesting reading this thread and I'm glad to learn I'm not alone in my feelings.

Personally, I think it's rude to leave the tv on if a friend has come round for a pre-arranged visit. To me it suggests that the conversation isn't good enough to stand alone, although I accept this will hardly ever be the intent.

I have 3 different friends who will have the tv on when I've arranged to go over. It always annoys me, but it's not worth making a big deal about it.

Personally, I think leaving the tv on when you have company can sometimes say something about feeling uncomfortable with silence, however small a gap it maybe in conversations.

This is certainly the case with a friend of mine. We went on a course together a few years back and they suggested we have a cup of tea and a chat about how the day went in their hotel room. I thought "how nice". As soon as we got into the room, they switched the tv on before they even switched the kettle on!!

Another time, this friend came over to see me at my house and I switched the tv off so we could chat. At one point they said "if we were at mine, that tv would be on". I took the opportunity to ask them why and they didn't really have an answer. They just said that that's what they've always done. I'm convinced it's often about personal insecurity.

Some people are absolutely terrified of even the risk of silence. I find that very strange.

maman

I understand about not liking silence. It's not that I'm scared of it, I just prefer some background sound. When I'm alone I have the radio on.

What I don't understand is why you'd need background sound when you have a visitor to speak to???

Although I find it bad manners and irritating, like LT said, I wouldn't fall out with anyone over it. It wouldn't be a deal breaker if I valued their friendship in other ways.

anon123456

Personally i would always leave the tv as it was when they entered so on or off dependent on that, then again we rarely have visitors who arent close family or friends. However if it was on i would turn the volume low.

My mum is like one of the posters above. Sky news is always on "just in case the Queen dies"

anon123456

edit above

realise that sounded like wishful thinking!!!

I meant it as so that she wouldnt miss a big news story... sorry

[Deleted User]

I put football on and turn volume off...or whatever channel... or put a dvd in that make TV look like a fire or fishtank lol <<< i dont do the last bit

London_Town

It was interesting to read a few posts on this thread suggesting the the tv would only go off if they had a more formal or business orientated visitor.

This leads me to the other frustrating "tv on or off" issue. I'm amazed at the amount of people who leave the tv on while an estate agent takes pictures to sell the house. I'm often on Right Move, and I regularly see tv's on. Once I saw a house that had Cilla Black on the screen and she was imortalised on the estate agent's pictures. Cilla is the only thing I've ever remembered about that house!