diff --git a/internal/container/event_generator.go b/internal/container/event_generator.go
index 3c147ecb..6d2233b0 100644
--- a/internal/container/event_generator.go
+++ b/internal/container/event_generator.go
@@ -98,13 +98,22 @@ func (g *EventGenerator) emitAsSingles(events []*LogEvent) bool {
 	return true
 }
 
+// maxOrphanLines bounds how many leading lines skipOrphanedLines will buffer
+// before giving up. A genuine orphan run is the tail of a single group split at
+// a fetch boundary, which is small. A busy container streaming sustained
+// level-less lines (all spaced under maxGroupTimeDelta) would otherwise look
+// like one endless orphan run and buffer forever, so the live view shows
+// nothing until a timing gap appears. Past this many lines it clearly isn't a
+// leftover fragment — emit what we have and resume normal processing.
+const maxOrphanLines = 1000
+
 // skipOrphanedLines drains leading simple events without a level that look
 // like orphaned continuation lines from a group already emitted in a prior
 // fetch. Returns the first non-orphan event (or nil if the stream ends).
-// If no non-orphan event arrives (stream ends or times out waiting), the
-// buffered events are emitted as singles — they weren't really orphans.
-// Lines near the container start time are never skipped since nothing can
-// precede them.
+// If no non-orphan event arrives (stream ends, times out waiting, or the run
+// exceeds maxOrphanLines), the buffered events are emitted as singles — they
+// weren't really orphans. Lines near the container start time are never
+// skipped since nothing can precede them.
 func (g *EventGenerator) skipOrphanedLines() *LogEvent {
 	var orphanBuffer []*LogEvent
 	var lastTimestamp int64
@@ -148,6 +157,13 @@ func (g *EventGenerator) skipOrphanedLines() *LogEvent {
 		lastTimestamp = current.Timestamp
 		orphanBuffer = append(orphanBuffer, current)
 
+		// A sustained run this long isn't a leftover group fragment — it's real
+		// content (a busy container). Stop skipping and emit it, then resume.
+		if len(orphanBuffer) >= maxOrphanLines {
+			g.emitAsSingles(orphanBuffer)
+			return g.nextEvent()
+		}
+
 		// Use peek (with timeout) so we don't block forever on a live stream.
 		if next := g.peek(); next == nil {
 			// No more events within the timeout — these aren't orphans.
diff --git a/internal/container/event_generator_test.go b/internal/container/event_generator_test.go
index a4c5f799..c6ca0684 100644
--- a/internal/container/event_generator_test.go
+++ b/internal/container/event_generator_test.go
@@ -88,6 +88,50 @@ func waitTimeout(wg *sync.WaitGroup, timeout time.Duration) bool {
 	}
 }
 
+// steadyLevellessReader emits simple, level-less, timestamped lines forever,
+// spaced under both maxGroupTimeDelta (so they look groupable) and the peek
+// timeout (so peek never reports a gap). It stops when ctx is cancelled.
+type steadyLevellessReader struct {
+	ctx   context.Context
+	base  time.Time
+	step  time.Duration // timestamp spacing between consecutive lines
+	delay time.Duration // wall-clock spacing between Read() calls
+	i     int
+}
+
+func (r *steadyLevellessReader) Read() (string, StdType, error) {
+	select {
+	case <-r.ctx.Done():
+		return "", 0, io.EOF
+	case <-time.After(r.delay):
+	}
+	ts := r.base.Add(time.Duration(r.i) * r.step).Format(time.RFC3339Nano)
+	r.i++
+	return ts + " lorem ipsum dolor sit amet", STDOUT, nil
+}
+
+func TestEventGenerator_doesNotStallOnSustainedLevellessStream(t *testing.T) {
+	// Reproduces the live-log stall: a busy container whose backlog has rotated
+	// away streams from a point far past its start, so skipOrphanedLines never
+	// short-circuits. With sustained level-less lines spaced under
+	// maxGroupTimeDelta, every line looks like an orphaned continuation, so the
+	// skip loop buffers forever and the UI shows "no logs". The generator must
+	// give up and emit instead.
+	ctx, cancel := context.WithCancel(context.Background())
+	defer cancel()
+
+	reader := &steadyLevellessReader{ctx: ctx, base: time.Now(), step: time.Millisecond, delay: time.Millisecond}
+	// startedAt far in the past so the near-start short-circuit cannot fire
+	g := NewEventGenerator(ctx, reader, Container{StartedAt: time.Now().Add(-time.Hour)})
+
+	select {
+	case event := <-g.Events:
+		require.NotNil(t, event)
+	case <-time.After(5 * time.Second):
+		t.Fatal("no event within 5s: skipOrphanedLines stalled on a sustained level-less stream")
+	}
+}
+
 func Test_createEvent(t *testing.T) {
 	data := orderedmap.New[string, any]()
 	data.Set("xyz", "value")