New Year’s Eve Eve
Scott struggled to wake up for the final archived show of 2014, while Chris appeared irritatingly alert. Listeners were divided between returning to work and remaining in bed during the indistinct days between Christmas and New Year.
New Year’s Eve plans ranged from Bournemouth clubs to a country-and-western bar in Las Vegas. Scott warned that the latter was more likely to contain intimidating bikers than the welcoming women of Love Actually.
Boss Chicken returns
The show replayed its most dangerous hold-music experiment. Scott and Chris had called Radio 1 boss Rhys Hughes, placed him on hold and allowed him to hear what appeared to be a private studio conversation.
They criticised his beard, voice and office manner, suggested that he was secretly a pop fan and wondered whether he was reading a newspaper on the toilet. Rhys eventually interrupted with, “I am a secret pop queen,” proving that he had heard everything.
He summoned both presenters to his office after the show. The original recording ended without making clear whether the prank had been forgiven, which was why revisiting “Boss Chicken” still felt uncomfortable.
A relationship lasts less than 48 hours
Scott’s friend met a man through a dating app and accepted his suggestion that they become boyfriends after two dates. He immediately changed his Facebook status to “in a relationship”.
The other man then disappeared and made no further contact. The public declaration had lasted less than 48 hours, but Scott’s friend was too embarrassed to remove it because Facebook would announce the change.
Listeners explained how to hide the status and supplied even shorter examples, including one man who accepted a relationship request intended for somebody with a similar name. Scott also noted that the disappearing boyfriend had broken the show’s Christmas transfer embargo.
The Bali Tap End is replayed
The final major item was Chris’s special 24 Years at the Tap End from earlier in the year. Bali had been his first significant journey beyond the familiar party resorts of Greece, and his girlfriend refused to let him make matching holiday T-shirts.
He tried a boat party, encountered Balinese entertainment and underwent an unusually thorough massage on a public beach. Following local instructions left him naked beneath a towel while the sea breeze reached places he had not expected.
The massage made him reflect on Danny Howard, Radio 1 and the way his friends were growing up. He concluded that travelling had been a bold but correct decision and delivered his new philosophy about taking life to the edge.
After the replay, Chris accepted that Bali had changed him slightly. Asked where he would travel next, he considered places that were far away but still familiar enough not to feel too alien.
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