I had several experiences similar to what you describe. One of my favourites was a TV show we stumbled across while visiting Japan. It was sort of a game show,

I had several experiences similar to what you describe. One of my favourites was a TV show we stumbled across while visiting Japan. It was sort of a game show, where three blindfolded contestants had to sit on a bench that had been taken from a train, and they had to guess which type of train said bench was taken from, simply from the feel of the bench. The programme then continued with what seemed like various stats and tidbits about the correct train type.