Pete Doherty: “I don’t think I ever dared to dream that I’d still be knocking about”

We meet Pete Doherty at his Islington hotel in between radio spots and a nearby charity gig. Crammed on a tiny sofa, we’re joined by an unexpected guest that won’t leave his side and insists on splaying themselves between us – his absolute bear of a dog, Gladys. “We tried to put her on the other side of the room, but what are you going to do?” shrugs Doherty. “She’s 60 kilos of brawn!”

While Doherty hotel stays of the past may have once been full of far less adorable figures, the scene today is a lot more wholesome. The now-clean Pete has his wife and child in-tow, and it seems nigh-on unimaginable that the rozzers might be waiting outside to charge through the Christmas shoppers and raid the room of the former tabloid fodder frontman as they once might have. In the spirit of the season, these days are all about a little more of that sweet and heavenly peace. Is he feeling festive?

“Yeah, I suppose so!” he replies. “We’ve got the baby, and we’re going to be spending Christmas with family. It’s all around the tree and the stuffing and that. I get into all that. It’s nice to be pottering about London today, seeing all the office parties having their Christmas dos with everyone letting their hair down; letting their guard down maybe.”

He didn’t fancy crashing any Christmas parties, then?

“I was invited over for a few drunken selfies. Not me drunk, by the way – the office parties.” Of course. “It’s interesting. It is one of the last things now in this dissipating society we live in, these end times, it’s one of the things that brings out the better side of people. That idea of peace on Earth is obviously null and void this year, but goodwill? I don’t see it as a corny or cliché thing. I believe in community, I believe in charity. Coming together for whatever reason helps break down borders of all kinds.”

Most of all, he admits, he’s looking forward to some time off. “It’s been a long old slog this year,” he says, understating the glowing campaign The Libertines have just completed for their critically acclaimed and commercially successful ‘All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade’ – their first album in nearly a decade and first to top the charts in 20 years.

“At the same time, the band seemed to come together,” he says of his bond with fellow ‘Likely Lads’ Carl Barât, John Hassall and Gary Powell. “As a musical force, we’ve had moments of unity that were unparalleled, but just as mates and as a family, it was our best time.”

Check out our full interview with Doherty below or watch it above, where he tells us about taking stock, growing up, how to run a record label, new music, and the future of The Libs and Babyshambles.

NME: Hello, Pete. The last time we spoke, Carl described the making of this album as “the first time you were all truly facing the same direction”. Did all that harmony carry on through?

Pete Doherty: “Yes, up to a certain point. Obviously Gladys comes with me everywhere, but I do have another dog. When he came with me on tour, I was actually banned from the band bus. One baby, a wife and two dogs was too much, so I was put on the crew bus. But you know what? The crew bus is a fucking cool place to be! I don’t want them [the dogs] to be any place they’re not welcome. It’s not that they’re not welcome; it’s just that [Gladys] likes to know where she is. She’ll have a sniff around at night to see who’s in the bunk, and that was too much for Carl.”

Is Carl not a dog person?

“He is a dog person, he just doesn’t like to have his groin nuzzled in his sleep at night. At least not by Gladys!”

Eyyooo. Now with Christmas approaching also comes the end of the year, which means we’re now almost a quarter of the way through the 21st Century. In the year 2000, where did you imagine you’d be 25 years later? Did you think you’d still be a Libertine and a father?

“I was a father around then in that I have 20-year-old son now, but I wasn’t a hands-on father in many ways. It’s what I always wanted. I always wanted a close-knit family that I was there with and for. Now I’m married as well and settled in a lot of ways. Maybe that’s what a lot of people want, really – that sort of nest. That nest and loving environment. I don’t know if I dared to dream it was possible.

“At that time, the turn of the century, 2025 seemed a hell of a long way off. I think we all imagined it was going to be hover cars and light sabres, which probably do exist but only for the upper echelons of the American military.

Elon Musk has probably got one.

“Oh of course he has, yeah, but not around here. There are no hover cars in Angel. Anyway, you’ve thrown me a little bit with that question. It’s a really good question but something I’d probably like to sit and think about for a moment. I really wonder what I thought of the future, I never really thought a lot about it. That time in the early 2000s was in our NME glory days of being on the cover. This was the very early days of the internet when the only thing it was used for was very slow to upload forums, and you’d go down the internet cafe because you couldn’t get it on your phone.

“I don’t think I ever dared to dream that I’d still be knocking about and making music. That would have been the ideal vision. It’s interesting that [before the interview] you mentioned Paul Weller and Primal Scream are doing a pro-Palestine gig. In one way, it’s beautiful to see that someone like Bobby Gillespie has stayed true to his principles, but in another it’s sad that it would still be necessary to have to fight for that point of view. To know that 25 years ago, Palestine was probably in a more fucked state than ever, then with what’s happening, and it’s been blitzed and raised to the ground. The people have been terrorised, and they’re talking about genocide. What a mess there.”

“Then you mentioned Kneecap [who performed as well]. That probably would have piqued my curiosity to know that there was a mob of Irish rappers who wear tricolour balaclavas on stage. But 25 years ago, they were probably like toddlers or something or not born. If I’d have known about that, then I could have nicked the whole idea. I could have done some freestyle in Gaelic. I’d basically have only been able to say ‘a thousand welcomes’ a lot. They’re good lads, though, and really talented. There have been a lot of really good acts coming out of Ireland this year.”

Anyone else you’ve been listening to?

“Junior Brother, have you heard him? He’s doing some weird psychedelic folk incantation stuff – but at the same time, he can obviously write a song. Lisa O’Neill on Rough Trade, she’s this folk, very poetic, very lyrical in that way that the Irish do so well. It’s almost Pagan-like. And, of course, Fontaines D.C., obviously they’re very well known now. They’ve got a few tunes. I was listening to them in the car and listening to ‘Starburster’. Somehow it had passed me by. I knew about it but hadn’t actually heard it. I listened to it all the way through a couple of times, and it’s just a belter of a tune.”

You recently released a collab with Benefits, which was cool. New music-wise, what’s been on your radar?

“With the label [Strap Originals], there’s a lot of listening being done. Not so much always by me, but we’ve got quite a dedicated team who are always looking for things. The people that we’ve picked up and supported are the people we believe in. We’ve got a Dutch band who are, I suppose it’s punk but I’d call it rock’n’roll. They’re pretty cool. He seems pretty angry.

“PreGoblin, Alex Sebley. We released an album of his. It didn’t sell many physical copies, but I’ll never know why. It’s gorgeous. Achingly beautiful, strong songs. There are two or three songs on there that I think David Bowie would have been proud to release. We’ve got an Irish singer-songwriter called Thomas Urwin. Personality-wise, he hasn’t hit it off with other people at the label, which is a shame because he’s got some great songs. We released an EP of his called ‘Born A County Antrim Boy’, and he’s got a song called ‘Belfast Is Gonna Burn’, which is just a belter.”

“Again, we didn’t sell many copies. When he supported The Libertines in Belfast, I was going around with the box saying, ‘Get your EPs’. They were flying, but I probably sold as many by hand as we did online. It’s a hard graft out there. It’s all about streaming, and I can’t get my head around it because I don’t have a phone, and we’re not online. Obviously we’ve got a social media department, but I’m not part of that.

“So I’m starting a fanzine. I’m going to try and reignite an analogue people’s front: The People’s Front Of Analogia! My fanzine’s coming out in January, and it’s called On Strap. In issue one of On Strap will be a PO Box, where any contributors who believe in the written word still can send in their reviews, cartoons, dreams, crossword puzzles. So look out for that! I’m going to be selling it outside the venues of The Libertines’ European shows in February.”

Is it difficult to run a label with that old-school mentality?

“A lot of it is business stuff [done by other people]. I was there at the inception because I had no one else to release The Puta Madres album [2019]. The day-to-day running of it, I’m not involved with. We’ve got to a point where I can’t just say, ‘We’re going to sign this band now’. We’ve got a team, and it’s quite democratic, but I’m very much a part of it. It’s in my soul, it’s in my blood. I’m not the label boss, but I’m a part-owner, and I’m very invested in it. Maybe one out of every six bands will be one I chose to sign, but so far, each band that I’ve believed in has got drunk and offered to fight the rest of the team!”

Do you think you just attract violent outsiders?

“I like to think so! Apart from Gladys, she’s alright.”

Strap Originals celebrated its fifth anniversary this year. It’s one thing to make music, but how does it feel to have given so much music a home?

“Who knows what we want to do? It’s a dream, really. So many times over the years, I’ve believed in bands and longed for them to make it and had them support us, but I was never able to take them to Rough Trade or Parlophone and said, ‘You’ve got to sign this band’. Now I can. Now I can have more of an influence in giving someone a real platform, not just a stage. Some songwriters aren’t fame-hungry chancers in the way that we were and just want to write and record. If they haven’t got that drive without industry bods looking after them, then they’ll just disappear.

“As an independent label, we’re doing really well. What we want to do now is stay independent, but it would be nice if we could get a proper distribution deal so we could really help people get out there. It’s a question of whether or not it’s selling out to work with a corporation. I don’t think it is, as long as you maintain independence. Otherwise, you’re fighting a losing game.”

Do you think much about the choppy seas artists are facing? There’s a fight to keep venues open, alongside a fight for artists to actually be able to afford to live to play in them. Could you imagine being a new artist today?

“I don’t know. We were quite feral. We managed to get up drain pipes and find some squats. Driving around London today, those places just aren’t there. All those crumbling warehouses and now glass and steel towers. So I don’t know. Maybe I wouldn’t have stayed in London and gone somewhere warmer, but since Brexit, you can’t even do that now. If you are driven enough, you’ll just try to find a way – but that’s not always enough.”

What would you say to a 16-year-old who has bought a guitar and been inspired by ‘Definitely Maybe’ or ‘Up The Bracket’ and is sceptical about getting into making music?

“Just write, keep going, believe in yourself. Keep writing. You can have all the dreams, and dreams are great, but you’ve got to get your head down and bang away at your guitar. You have to love it and believe in yourself.”

Next year is a big year, and also the 20th anniversary of Babyshambles debut album, ‘Down In Albion’. There has been talk of a reunion tour…

“It is on the cards. We will get back together and get in a room with the instruments and play through the old songs, then get on stage and do it. But it’s the ‘who’ and the ‘when’ that needs to be worked out. I think we’ll just keep that one on the horizon and deal with that one next year. Before then, I’ve got a new collection of songs which I’m putting out on my own label, which is tidy.”

Would you like to make another Babyshambles album?

“I’ve got no idea. I wrote a new song the other day that I think would really work as a ‘Shambles song. Who knows? It’s a long way off yet. It’s going to be next Autumn, so we’ll see.”

You’ve also got Libertines’ huge London show with Supergrass and Soft Play…

“Yes, at Gunnersbury with Lambrini Girls, Hak Baker and Supergrass. It’s a lovely place, some beautiful old oak trees. Some of the best oak trees in the London area. That alone is reason enough to get down there.”

Does it feel heavy and surreal to have Supergrass supporting you?

“Yes. There was a time years ago, back when we were young whippersnappers, where we’d be down Dublin Castle lying to try and impress girls, telling them that we were going on tour with Supergrass, then trying to get them back to our basement. I’d go out to the phone box and call the landline, pretending to be Supergrass’ manager! This is before we were even signed or had a bass player or a drummer. Then we ended up supporting them, and now they’re supporting us.

“I remember one time, Carl was going around pretending to be the guitarist of Radiohead at the Wag Club in Soho. I think one of them was there as well. He was chatting to these Scandinavian girls with his hair all over his face, saying, ‘I’m the guitarist in Radiohead’, and they were like, ‘Ah, I just met your bass player! He’s over there!’”

“We came a cropper a few times. ‘If you’re really in Radiohead, why are you handing out flyers for the club?’ There was always a way around it.”

Is the Gunnersbury Park gig going to be the victory lap and full-stop on the ‘All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade’ campaign?

“I don’t know, I think there’s more to it than that. I think there are a few festivals around in France, Spain and Australia. Hopefully, we’ll be playing with the string section and the dancers and the full shebang.”

Have you and Carl spoken much about the next record?

“We haven’t, no. There are a lot of ideas about, though. We didn’t really have much time but during soundchecks for the last tour, there were a few ideas. We never really just say, ‘Right, let’s meet in the studio with a blank, empty canvas’. Maybe we should try that. I’m a bit wary of that. For someone who’s well-known for being chaotic, I like to be well-prepared in my own way. Maybe it’s my early Cub Scout training.”

Personally, where would you like the next Libertines album to go? What would you like it to sound like?

“Some of those early ‘70s Stevie Wonder records. Really jazzy and jangly guitar sounds with a Wurlitzer and Motown-y drum sounds. If we had the right song, we could do something really uplifting and melodic. I think Gary would like that.”

Are The Libertines going to have a Christmas party?

“No, but I’m going to give them all a bell. I can’t see it happening, really, unless we can all get down to Margate. It’s been a very busy time with different things going on with different families. When you lose a parent or someone close to you, Christmas can be a really lonely time. I’m praying for everyone and looking forward to seeing everyone when possible?”

Do you have any new year’s resolutions?

“I don’t know what you really mean by that. I do make resolutions, but really just to keep on this path that I’m on. To stay off the hard things, be there for the baby, get this solo album out and see what the world thinks of it. There’s so much chaos in the world at the moment: it’s horrible in the Ukraine and Gaza, and it could go very wrong in Syria, even though it’s great Assad has gone. We pray, don’t we, Gladys?”

The Libertines tour throughout 2025, with a headline show at London’s Gunnersbury Park on Saturday August 9. Visit here for tickets and more information. 

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