As Peel's show follows on from Zane Lowe, Peel opening's comments presumably reflect the fact that the preceding DJ / show has been in receipt of some award.
Peel says that he went shopping for Christmas presents during the day but came back with records instead, one of which is the solo LP from Damon Albarn. Peel admires Albarn for being prepared to take a risk with the release - "I quite like the fact that despite his position, he's prepared to set himself up to have the piss taken, essentially."
Upon hearing that members of Maher Shalal Hash Baz are listening online back in Japan, Peel asks them to look out for a copy of his missing Piss LP (see 11 September 2003, 11 November 2003). He also requests more Melt-Banana, having learned that the group have released "some nineteen EPs in Japan" of which he owns not one.
Having recently been reunited with the 665 photographs he took in Dallas in the mid-Sixties, Peel admits that many of them are of trees.
The TV monitor in the studio is showing Cherin concert. Peel: "She's my age... She looks very well on it, obviously. Looks rather better than I do, facts have to be faced. But... it's in a stadium somewhere and people are going berserk. Most of them seem to be 16, 17. I mean, what is that all about? Utterly mystifying. Nothing against the woman, but if she was on in our village hall and there was nothing else on, I might go and see her. But otherwise... I don't think so."
BBC Listing omits all tracks after Maher Shalal Hash Baz - 'Ethiopia'
JP: "If you can actually demean yourself to the level of sending emails to a programme that not only doesn't win awards but doesn't get nominated for them either - not that I'm bitter at all - john.peel@bbc.co.uk or you can text scornful messages to us at 81199."