i used to work in a chinese restaurant and was shown how to cook one the proper way.
i did it once for our Christmas dinner.
My god what a palava!!
drying, basting, poaching, hanging, then deep frying - it took two days of attention.
i swear -the first time i tried the above recipe (nigella's of course), i was amazed. You don't prick it or salt it or rub with anything at all.
The most prep you can do is trim off the flap of fat in the cavity if you can be bothered.
Don't be tempted to tak it out too early though, you need to be able to knock on it and get a nice sound.