Yet Another Roast Chicken

Today's approach produced a very fairly good one.

1) Remove chicken from packet, pat dry, rub down with salt, and leave to air-dry in the fridge overnight. Make sure it's nicely spread out (i.e. not trussed).
2) Preheat oven to 180F.
3) Stuff chicken with a generous amount of time and a lightly-rolled lemon.
4) Soften some butter (I use the oven; don't go light here, you can always save the extra), add salt if unsalted, and add a generous number of thyme leaves. Mix together and refrigerate briefly to partially set.
5) Remove wishbone
6) Brush the chicken down with the butter, making sure to get all areas.
7) Roast at 180 for 4 hours
8) Remove from oven and allow to rest. Prep sides. Preheat oven to 525 when possible.
9) Baste in the roasting juices. Remove the lemon and add in a halved head of garlic. Roast at 525 for 10 minutes.
10) Rest uncovered 10 minutes, carve, and serve.

Further Note:
I recently discovered why Peking Duck gets boiled and chilled a few times before cooking - once you've loosened up the skin, the boiling and chilling contracts it again so it loses any stretch marks and holds tight to the carcass.

I'm not sure if I want to do this before or after adding the butter. My guess (honestly) is that since the butter and salt both go between the meat and skin, it'll work out best if I either:
A) Put the salt on with the skin loosened for one night, add the butter the next day, blanch and chill for a few cycles, then fridge-dry for a second night
or
B) Just put both on at once, blanch and chill, then fridge-dry for two days before cooking

I'll try both in the next few weeks. I guess I could also try salt, thyme, a bit of pepper, and no butter under the skin, then brush down lightly with fully-melted butter on the outside.