Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe's Parenting Hell - S10 EP20: Pete Doherty

Episode Date: May 2, 2025

Joining us this episode to discuss the highs and lows of parenting (and life) is the singer-songwriter and frontman of The Libertines - Pete Doherty. ⁠Pete's new solo album 'Felt Better Alive' is available to buy on May 16th 2025. Parenting Hell is a Spotify Podcast, available everywhere every Tuesday and Friday. Please subscribe and leave a rating and review you filthy street dogs... xx If you want to get in touch with the show with any correspondence, kids intro audio clips, small business shout outs, and more.... here's how: EMAIL: [e-mail] Follow us on instagram: @parentinghell  Join the mailing list to be first to hear about live show dates and tickets, Parenting Hell merch and any other exciting news... MAILING LIST: ⁠parentinghellpodcast.mailchimpsites.com⁠ A 'Keep It Light Media' Production  Sales, advertising, and general enquiries: [e-mail] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hello, I'm Rob Beckett. And I'm Josh Willicombe. Welcome to Parenting Hell, the show in which Josh and I discuss what it's really like to be a parent, which I would say can be a little tricky. So to make ourselves and hopefully you feel better about the trials and tribulations of modern day parenting, each week we'll be chatting to a famous parent about how they're coping. Or hopefully how they're not coping. And we'll also be hearing from you, the listener, with advice and of course tales of parenting woe. Because let's be

honest there are plenty of times where none of us know what we're doing. Hello you're listening to Rupert, can you say Rob Beckett? Beckett. Can I say Rob? Rob. Beckett. Beckett. And Josh? Josh. Widdicombe. Widdicombe.

Yay, Glaclap! Yay! There we go. Lovely. Rob, I'd say that was a good one, but they've put as their subject, amazing podcast intro, exclamation mark, exclamation mark, pick me with three E's.

And when did it get sent? 6.50 PM last night. Oh. Which is a Wednesday, so they haven't, we're recording on a Thursday for once, so they haven't actually, Rob. That's pure potluck, that is. That is pure potluck and a fair play to them. Yeah. This is my two and a half year old son,, that is. That is pure potluck and a fair play to them.

This is my two and a half year old son, Rupert. She is saying your names with much enthusiasm. She? No, I said she is for no reason. Saying your names with much enthusiasm. She is, not she is. When you say she is, it's a- I know, I fucked up, okay?

No, no, no, no, no, sorry. Okay, let's just move on. Deal with the fact I fucked up. I'm just trying to deal with a poor little girl called Rupert. Secondly, when you say she is, it sounded just move on. Deal with the fact I fucked up. I'm just trying to deal with a poor little girl called Rupert. Secondly, when you say she is, it sounded like cheers. I didn't say she is. What did you say?

She is. I said she is by mistake. Say it from the start. This is my two and a half year old son, Rupert, saying your names with much enthusiasm. The pod has kept me going through some dark times of postnatal depression. Oh God.

And now, I hope you're enjoying this Rob. Yeah. I'm not laughing at the depression, I'm laughing at the awkwardness. No, no, no, the awkwardness of the situation. The one, when the one show goes wrong, and now has me laughing through the deep joys of toddlerhood and currently potty training.

Keep it sexy and relatable please. I've got a really funny story about done it. I won't say who it was. But I was thinking to this guy was lovely guy met this guy and he was talking about his dealing with anxiety and stuff was really nice open discussions. He was a bit older than me. So it's nice to think for men especially to talk about difficulties he's had. And he was talking about he's very anxious. I didn't leave the house for about three years and

he did some CBT therapy and now he's out out of that. Fine. Now he's prime minister. So now he's out working and doing his job. Right. And it was really like encouraging story. We had a nice story. He said his wife stuck with him, blah, blah, blah. And his kids and he just having a tough time and he did it. And, but he literally couldn't leave the house for three months.

And then he had a, he was trying to get to the shop that it was about. Three minute walk from his house and it took him six months to get the courage up. So he was doing like five steps every week just to get him further and further. And even now that he says that he's got his coping mechanisms and he'll catch a short breath and go into having a panic attack, he'll take himself away and do some breathing to calm himself down. So it was really nice chat. It's a lovely funny blog as well. And then I remember this time that it really set me back a little bit when it's sort of, you

know, it's a funny story, but a little bit tragic as well. So it was like building it up every week. I was going out and doing an extra five steps, extra five steps. Anyway, it got to the point where I was five steps away from the shop. So it was like, today was a day that I was actually going to go somewhere else. I wasn't just going to walk there and I was doing it, but I had to count in my head every one, two, three, four, five, next one, two, three, four, five. I had a head down, I had my headphones in.

I wasn't trying to just be distracted from the world so I could get out in the world. I was walking and walking, he went, anyway, I got there, and then as I stepped onto the road like that, because I wasn't looking, I was concentrating, a Prius came in and knocked me over. Ha, King Nora. Oh my God.

I was like, all right, it wasn't bad yet, but I skidded back, landed in a puddle, and then the woman just got out and just shouted at me. Oh my God. And he went and I just burst into tears and went home and stayed in for six months. Bless him. He was such a lovely guy. He was laughing about it.

Where were you when you were having this discussion? At my house. He was doing something in my house. And I was just like, and we laugh. He was like, he was telling it as a funny story, but the way he said, but I wasn't expecting that because it was still, it was so like, I was thinking shops closed. That's where I was thinking you were going. It's shut two months ago.

Yeah, but I get out. That's okay to say, I've not named it. I was just saying, but he knows who he is and well done. He was really, he should be really proud of doing that and also proud to be able to talk about it to people. Cause I think sometimes you don't want say you do get anxious about that, you can't leave the house and eventually you leave the house. I think

some people will be like, don't bring that up anymore. He's at the house. Yeah, I think to be able to process it and talk about it is very important for them and also for other people to go Yeah, that did happen. And that is part of who I am. But that's not what happens now. Yeah, I think sometimes rather than closing the door on, you had a breakdown for two years. It's good to be honest about it and stuff.

So, yeah, that's just what he's telling me that story. Because all the other stuff to Toro was like, no, no, I had this and I had that and I had to do that. And it was very like informative. And I was being very like, no, I was showing a lot of empathy and listening. I wasn't making any sort of jokes, which I normally do in social situations.

No, I need to be respectful. It must have been a blessed relief. This guy's opening social situations. I need to be respectful. Must have been a blessed relief. This guy's opening up, so I need to be kind and considerate. And then he hit me with that and I just couldn't, I just burst into laughter in his face. And he laughed as well. But again, I thought shot was going to be shot or he got there and his card didn't work. I didn't expect him to be run over. Poor Saj.

Anyway, don't know how we got onto that. Well talking of people that have been through things today, we've got Pete Doherty, Rob. Oh God, this is a real... What a journey. I loved the Libertines and I love Pete Doherty from my youth. That was very exciting to interview him. Do you know what was mental though? I interviewed him and then about four days later I was in Stockton on tour and I drove past

a tour bus. And I went, I know that tour bus. Here we go. I recognize that tour bus. Why don't have that tour bus. And I remember it was a tour bus that Pete Doherty like he showed us the tour bus. Yeah, I was like, he's happy to have his tour bus. And I looked up he was gigging in Stockton the exact same night as me. No. Did you go say hi And I looked it up, he was gigging in Stockton the exact same night as me. No. Did you go and say hi?

No, no, no. No, it'd be weird, wouldn't it? Well, yeah, also I was at separate venues across town. And you know what though? What a night in Stockton. Oh, what a night. People say that, you know, everything's going on in London,

but one night in Stockton, you can choose Rob Beckett or Pete Doherty. Stockton, the home of the first ever train. The home of the first ever train. The first ever train journey was Stockton and they have this mad, if you Google Stockton, look at this, right? I thought there was one, when I go to a theatre,

I always say, what's happening in the local area? Is there anything I should be made aware of? So it wasn't in Birmingham, there was like the binge strike and you know that there's a thread that you can talk about or I remember I did a little village in Wales and Morrison's was going to shut down and it was a big news story. And so I just would refer back to that and it shows up, you know, it's and it's funny

and it's they like it local area. And they went, Oh, the mad steam train comes up in the town centre every hour. What you Google Stockton town centre train statue, I don't remember what it's called. Go on YouTube. It's like the weirdest thing I've ever seen. And I mentioned it and no one cared. Stockton flyer. Yeah, that's it. Stockton flyer. I don't even know if it's a

statue but it's moving. It pops up out the ground. mechanical sculpture in Stockton on T's. You see it? Yeah, it comes out the ground. It's like an old steampunk train thing looks like a load of scrap metal and it honks and bells and whistles and does it. Oh wow, look at that. It's mad, isn't it? That's great.

Yeah, it's cool. Every hour, even at night. Fucking hell, that's cool. I don't know about that. Yeah, the Stockton Flyer. Have I ever told you about when I had to pretend not to be vegetarian in Stockton? No, why?

I'm sure I've told you this. Stockton is properly the home of the Old Man Pub. You know how popular that Old Man Working Class pubs, there's loads there. All of it is proper like spit and store dust pubs. It's cool. Yeah. Why did you have to pretend?

So it was me and Susie Ruffall who was supporting me. Yeah. And the guy who was organizing it, lovely bloke, he put on this huge great spread for us. Oh, I think you've mentioned this before. Yeah. And you just had to eat it because you didn't want to. We hid it because we didn't want to be rude. And then afterwards we asked him for advice on a curry house. And he said, I'll come with you. Oh, so you had to eat meat again? No, no, we didn't eat it there. We hid it. We put it in our bags and left the eat meat again? No, no, we didn't eat it there. We hid it.

We put it in our bags and left the wrappers there to make it look like we did. Oh, at the buffet? Right, okay. And then at the curry house. It's so easy to eat veggie as well. She was at the time. At the curry house, we were both like-

Oh, god, a couple of veggie lesbians on tour. Yeah, we were both like, do you know what? I fancy a veggie curry. I never normally have one. No, but do you know what? I had a lot of bloody meat back at the venue. I'm spammed off me now, yeah? We put out such a nice spread

we thought we can't say. There we go. I had cottage cheese on toast in Stockton. Oh, very nice. In the dressing room. Right, here's Pete Dowety, Josh. Enjoy. Yeah, enjoy everyone. We're outside the O2 at the Docklands I think. Oh nice.

Are you gigging tonight? Yes, we're playing Deptford tonight and Catford tomorrow. Oh quality. So we're all here, the baby's here too. Fortunately, she well, fortunately she's not awake yet. So I thought she might be able to join me. Oh yeah, well don't wake her up, let her sleep if she's sleeping. She's well happy.

She's got a little bunk. She's down there. Aw. So you take the whole family on tour? Yeah, we've got the dog, the wife, and the baby, all at the end there. That was the reason I'm not allowed on the banned bus anymore with the Libertines.

I have to go on the crew bus, because they started getting out when I took the dogs dogs and then the baby just wants to step too far. Pete Doherty was cramping the party style. Yeah, I know. Can you imagine? How old is she now? She's 22 months. Nearly two.

Yeah. You're still doing the mumps thing though? Yeah, no, well, it's fun, isn't it? Because I want to say one and a half, but it feels like I'm lying, you know what I mean? And then my judge on how she's walking or not talking. Is she bilingual? Because you're in France, aren't you? Yeah, she is. I mean, she's not like speaking a lot, but when she does speak, she's like with my wife, she'll say, uncle, uncle,kor. And with me she'll say, mo. Aww.

They're two of her favourite words, that's all she really says. Mo. Ankor. Or no. Well they don't really speak that much at that age, do they? Really they're just running about trying to like jump off stuff and hit stuff, aren't they? Bang their head.

Yeah, well that's another reason why she loves the bus, because it's like a big playground really. In fact, we have this, because it's just acoustic shows we're doing, it's not like the Libertines. So is it a Libertines tour at the moment or your own stuff? No, it's just acoustic, so she's been on stage with this. Oh, did you get her on stage? We didn't really want to, we didn't want her to be really healthy, but to be honest, you can't keep her off, she just loves it. Most of the time she's got this little dance, I don't know who she's got it off, She doesn't move her back, back to the straight.

It's just the legs that go down and she goes. It's finished for about 40 minutes. My daughter did that. She was obsessed with your welcome from Moana, that song, you know, the Maui song. And she would do that and just stand in front of it and bounce like that for like 10 times in a row. They love it.

Is she got a favorite song she does that to is it the whole set? Yeah, this is a little song I wrote. I haven't got a guitar, I'd play it for you. I can get one out of the hold if you really like. Finish with the song. Finish with the song. All right, Jai, can you grab us an acoustic guitar

out of the hold? It's cracked, that one on the bunk. This is perfect. And we've cracked it. I should thank you for me and my daughter, we're listening to Run, Run, Run from your, the new Libertines album. And we were waiting to get the car wash.

We were listening to it and she loved it. And we put together an entire dance routine to it. Cause it's with the arms running like that and then all the different lyrics in it. And she still dances to that on her own in her room. Cause I've all the chicken in the land. So she's biting into a drumstick and then doing the strong thing with the arms

and stuff like that. It's so cute when you have those little moments with your kids where you connect on a song and then when you're together and it plays, you can mess around like that. Absolutely, yeah. Absolutely. That's one of my big joys really

is just singing the songs of her. So I've got all the French nursery rhymes down now as well. Oh really? Yeah, yeah, I know them all the French nursery rhymes down now as well. Oh really? Yeah, yeah, I know them all. So they're the same as the English ones but with different lyrics or are they completely new? They're similar to, like, think of something like Three Blind Mice. It's actually quite a sinister song, do you know what I mean? Yeah.

Four little mice get massacred by the neurotic farmer's wife. And there's a few like that. There's probably the most popular one. There's one called Une Suiv surrivette which means one uh a green mouse There's a snail in there. Well yes, he's got a mouse, he catches both of the tail, he shows them to the blokes, he says what do I do with him and they say oh, stick him in the oil, stick him in the boiling water and cook up nice like a big fat snail and we'll all eat him. But it's such a sweet, jaunty song. Yeah.

Well, that's the beauty of hot music, isn't it? Yeah. Talk me through your day when you're on tour with a kid and a dog and a family, because I would find it stressful. If it was stressful for Billy May, we wouldn't do it, do you know what I mean? Oh no, I'd find it stressful for myself. I think the kids would love it. It's harder for the parent, I think. Yeah.

Because I'd be thinking, oh, I need to get, you know, not get in the zone or whatever, but you know, all right, I've got to get to the theater. Often before a gig, I just like to do nothing. Do you know what I mean? Are you like chasing it? No, no, no, that's just impossible. That's like some far flung fantasy world.

Yeah. So she sleeps quite late, you know what I mean? She goes to bed late and she's never ever been to Cresshaw. Yeah. And if she's always been with us. So she's very used to the tour bus, but she'll sleep quite late. She'll fall asleep about midnight or one. So I'll always make sure I'm up at about seven or eight to walk the dog. Yeah. I took Gladys out for about an hour. Just wherever you are, you just get off the bus and start walking. Yeah. Well, over the years, I've sort of got to know a lot, you know, in most towns in Europe, really. So I know all the

spots where she can shit undisturbed and the weird knowledge you pick up as a touring singer. And then I'll either go back to bed or if I've had a good kid, I'll just sit up and have a cup of tea, have a cigarette and then depending if the venues letters in or not, I'll go in and use the facility to seize the shower and, and then normally sometime between 10 and one billion may wake up and then it's just change your feeder, show the venue because that's sort of that was what those words as well was gig, gig, gig. Amazing. We're going to venue and there's always something there. There's always trolley. There's always trolleys and that's her thing. Do you know what I mean? So yeah, that's a good hour done that just pushing around on a trolley. Well yeah, because also she can just

run around the whole, it's just an open empty space for her to run in circles. Same with Gladys as well and the thing about having a dog and a baby is it's not, people don't see it every day. Yeah. So you get these like cantankerous old, uh, little monitor engineers who I've known for years, but they've never said hello to me all of a sudden. And I was like, ah, you know what I mean? I sort of managed to get a smile out of me finally after 20 years. This is the effect that a dog and a baby has on people.

And then, uh, the days go very fast really. Soundcheck, and she loves all that. Obviously she's got her little headphones and she just takes everything in really. She's obsessed with guitar stands. She loves that. She's not that interested in the guitar. She loves guitar stands, mic stands, drums. She loves to bang at the drums.

There's always a support band with a set of drums. it just comes around fast really do the gig there's obviously a lot of chaos involved so hopefully she'll have a nap around that time but if not she'll probably we try not to let her have too much screen time yeah lovely big TV on the bus so probably know, for most of the time on stage, she'll be watching Peppa Pig on the screen. And then, I don't know, she's just really, she's kind of part of the team really. She's sort of growing up like this. Everyone's her uncle and auntie, you know what I mean?

Yeah. All the crew is all her uncle and auntie. And is there that thing, you know, like that it takes a village to bring up a kid, that old phrase, but I suppose touring is like a village right? Absolutely but also one of our guitar techs my mate who's my guitar tech and plays with me on stage Andy Neill, his son used to come on the bus a lot when he

was a kid when he was about 15 and now he's now he's our sort of apprentice guitar tech as well so she's got cousin Arlen and cousin Andy. It does feel like a big family anyway. It's nice to keep that routine as well, you know, because if you go away for a long time, you'll miss her. You won't spend any time with her. And at this age, they can just fit in around you. I wouldn't be able to do it if she didn't feel comfortable. She wasn't happy. I just wouldn't be able to do it because I don't want to be with her. You know what I mean?

I've missed opportunities in the past to be a father and I don't want to miss this one, you know what I mean? Because you do have an older daughter, is that right? Yeah, I don't see her at all. But I have an older son, he's 21 now. And we are, we're probably speaking to each other more now than we ever have, do you know what I mean? Oh, that's nice. And even then it's not that much, but it's...

But he's met Billy May as well, he's been doing a few... He's doing something, he's getting involved in bands and. He's been doing a few, he's doing something, he's getting involved in bands and he's got up and did a poem before one of the liberty shows and oh wow so Billy May's seen him yeah, still. Are you the only, I don't know, I don't know the answer to this, are you the only dad in the Libertines? No, no, no, no, no. Watched all their kids grow up, yeah. Do they bring their kids on tour and stuff no absolutely not John's kids and kids turned up for one show I was like oh it's great isn't it it's great I mean isn't it I quite like the vibe of just it's all being together and staying together Paul McCartney used to do that

all these kids I was at the peak of his, when the Beatles split up, it was all that era and he was in the extreme scrutiny from the press and he just packed his kids up and took them all to a Scottish Island like Mulligan Tyre. And then when he did go on the road, he just took them all with him in the van and I was like that, it was stuck in my head dad. Yeah. No, but I think I'm right in saying the rest of the Libertines see Taurean as an opportunity to get away from the... Yes, yes. That's probably going to come back and bite me on the arse that statement. But yeah. So would you like chat about parenting and stuff with the rest of the Libertines? Like is there... Yeah, absolutely. They've all got, funny enough,

they've all got two kids each and they're all good parents. I know and love their kids and their missus's and yeah, and obviously they're full of advice. You know what I mean? Good advice I think. I think when Billy May was first born and we were doing a residential recording or rehearsal somewhere, Gary was amazing at getting her to sleep. You know what I mean? When she would cry and anybody taught me some amazing moves. All in the hips, apparently.

Yeah. It's been for me that apparently it's absolutely essential that Billy May has a younger brother or sister. I really. Do you think you'll go again? I better ask my wife about that. I think she's, I would love to build an army.

Do you know what I mean? Yeah, I mean it's early but like obviously you say your son's done like a poem before the libertines and stuff. Obviously music's so central to your life. Will you be trying to get her into kind of playing instruments and stuff early doors? I won't get her into it. I'll just leave them around everywhere and if she chooses, you know, I'll be absolutely thrilled. So I mean, yeah. And what about QPR? Oh, yeah, no, she's been tough taking it to see Rangers already. Yeah, she's been. Yeah, yeah. took a seat. QPR

Preston and she slept from the fourth minute. She slept right through to the final whistle. Unbelievable. Is it not too loud? She has the little headphones as well. It can get loud at QPR. Yes. Thank you very much. But she was actually born in the hospital called the Mono Hospital, the Jacques Mono Hospital, which overlooks the halves ground where we live, where she was born. And she was born the night they went up to a rush on the night before the night they went up back to the top flight in France so we've been there more than we've been a QPR because it's closer. She's a regular feature also we get passes there to the directors box. Oh wow, quite cool to have two teams though

QPR and Le Hav. Well yeah because I don't get over that often you know I mean to see Rangers but it is a thrill it is ultimate, I get very sentimental now as well. I mean, this isn't the topic, but that ground is so great, Loftus Road, it just feels like one of the old, like it feels like such an old school ground. I think it does matter though, because it is like, football is a family tradition thing to go and experience the highs and lows, it sort of brings families together, doesn't it? That's why football's so tribal, isn't it?

Yeah, absolutely, you know what I mean? Why would she ever even dream about supporting QPR unless I force it on her? Yeah, exactly. She's going to know the words Les Ferdinand. Yeah, he's already on her wall. I know. You can be showing a Trevor Sinclair. Did Trevor Sinclair play for her? That overhead kick. What a goal. Oh, what a goal. And she'll know all about that in the south of France talking to her schoolmates, telling them about the France but also North West. So your book, the parents in the book, the things your parents should have told you but were too busy. Yeah, yeah. That was a

gift for me when Billy May was born from Gary, a drummer and the lip amazing. He's been in our downstairs toilet in France for, well, for nearly two years now. I've looked through it over years and it's hilarious. It is funny. Oh, thank you. Thanks, Pete. It's mad to think that you're reading that. I first saw the Libertines. I think I've said this to you before. I saw the Libertines in 2003 in Liverpool. I caught your towel and I can't, I don't know where it is, but it's somewhere in a box somewhere. I've got Pete Doherty's towel from 2003.

Liverpool University, would this be? Do you remember this gig? Yeah, if it's the one that the Bandits play, and Kill City play. Yeah, I remember that gig, yeah. Yeah, oh, I met the guy from Kill City at Ellis James' wedding, Rob Brydon's brother. Yeah, Welsh Pete, yeah, I remember that gig. Yeah. Yeah. I met the guy from Kill City Ellis James's wedding Rob Brydon's brother. Yeah, Welsh Pete. Yeah That was his nickname in Canada people was just nicknamed from where they were from a dunk estimate Welsh Pete Scarborough, Stephen Yeah

Well, I say Josh was like that blind too much so a couple, a massive Libertines fan and a big fan of yours for years. I used to listen to up the bracket when I was stacking yogurts in a supermarket on the 6am shift till 3pm in the afternoon. And it was the only thing that got me through the shift. But it's, it's mad to, I don't know, from seeing your sort of life, it's mad to see your sort of full circle and the stuff you've gone through and where you are now. And now you're this family man in a tour bus of his little you know one year and a half I think it's easily, don't say the happiest I've been, it's a funny word happy isn't it but it's the most... content? yeah I just feel at peace you know I love her

do you feel like it's a second chance? I do, I feel it is, without wanting to freak anyone out I think it is God. God has a plan for you, whoever or whatever he is. Maybe he's just a gas, but that gas has a plan for you. And I think has love for us. You know what I mean? And I believe that I have had a second chance. And you're going to Glastonbury.

You're doing Libertines and Pete Doherty, two gigs. Yeah. So you're going to take it to Glastonbury? Oh no, absolutely. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, absolutely. Yeah. I mean, she's kind of too young, really, to enjoy a lot of these things. It's like you say in your book about, you know, you can get the coolest present there is, but she just wants to chew the dog's tail on Christmas Day. Do you know what I mean? Yeah. Kind of still at that age and yeah, not, it's like, Katia thinks, my wife insists that she understands everything. Yeah. And you know, she'd never underestimate a 21 and a half old mum.

It's true. They do. They take it all in and remember stuff. And as they get older as well, you say something as a faraway comment. I said, like, I remember when my daughter's been playing football and they all no one actually tackles this or just stand near each other, trying to get the ball. And I just said to her, I was like, if you playing football and they all, no one actually tackles, they sort of just stand near each other trying to get the ball. And I just said to her, I was like, if you just like kick the ball quite hard,

you'll get that ball and then be able to go on an attack. There's a throwaway comment. And then like, that was about two years ago. And then she was like at a football party, yeah, you remember that thing he said to me, dad, about, and then I'm going, what the fuck did I say? You know what I mean? There's so much pressure because they take it all in.

She was like, and I kicked it off and I got it off of them. And I was like, all right, but you think these far away comments to them, you are everything. Mum and dad are like the people that know everything, they're in charge. So there's that pressure of whatever you say, they are taking it in, even at a young age. And you sort of think, hopefully I'm saying the right stuff. Well, I was, it was just me and her at the back of the bus yesterday. We were on the motorway and we're looking out there or looking out the window yeah just for the listeners Peter's just pulled down the kind of window blind window blind thing to show what is quite a depressing

scene isn't it so it's a car so I was thinking I want to be able to go for this the next hour and a half on the motorway without putting the screens on you know that was kind of my aim yeah and she was so happy just looking out the window, going, oh, oh, oh, Papa, because she calls me Papa, by the way, not because we're posh, because that's what the French say for dad. So I'm working on that anyway. Call me daddy if you want. And she said, OK, Papa. And she was just for ages, she's going, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh was going, ooh, ah, ah, another car, car, car.

And I was like, yeah, yeah. That's great. So imagine her at Glastonbury, you know what I mean? Ooh, 26 foot man on stills. You know what I mean? A golf buggy with the Brighton and O'Ralphian flag. Obviously there's going to come a point, and I don't know whether you've engaged in this, where she's going to be a teenager and she's going to be exposed to life's temptations. No, not Billy May. No.

How does Pete Doherty deal with a child saying to them the dangers of drinking and drugs and stuff like that? I don't know really, I haven't, I've got a little while to think about that. I swear I'll just be very honest with her I think. And do you feel like now, like with your wife settled in France, do you feel like you're bringing her up in a friend,

like, because there's a difference in parenting with French and British parenting. And your dad was like quite, was he a military man or something? Yeah, he was very strict. And so do you feel like this is a very different childhood to yours? Oh, well, Billy Mays.

Yeah, I mean, it couldn't be more. No, it'd be like if he'd taken me with him to the Gulf War. Do you know what I mean? It would have been an experience, wouldn't it? But you know what, I'd have loved it as well. I remember really missing him. It was a long time away when he went to Bosnia in the Gulf and he was away for years. He had it all up.

If I could have, if I'd have joined the army at 10, just to be with him. And so do you think about stuff like that when you bring her away on tour and stuff, you're like, I don't want her to have the same thing that happened when I was missing my dad. No, I don't really think of it like that because she's a lot younger. I just feel very, very close to her. I need to have her around and I kind of panic if I don't see her for too long. It's so easy and things can happen so fast.

You know what I mean? It's you can't let them out of your sight for a second. You're not in. So yeah, especially at that age, it's just constantly just running at danger and you're just hunched over the whole time. Bad back. Jumping up, climbing, jumping off things and you know what I mean? It's so good.

The dog is is good natured because she's always sticking things up his nose and you've got to be like, no, I don't think Gladys likes that Billy May. She's like, uncle, uncle, you get another crayon up there, easy. Have you got a plan of sending her to sort of nursery or preschool stuff and will she go to school in France? Is that the idea?

I'm gonna probably leave that, let's ask my wife what she thinks. Watch out, let's ask her. What's going on? What the plan is? She's not sleeping is she? She'll be dozing. Katya, do you remember that road book we had with got parents in hell? This is the land set.

No, road set. Oh yeah. Good morning. Morning. Sorry. I like to ask you what your plans are for preschool for Mercy. For school. What kind of plan do you mean? What do you mean? Is she going to go to school in France and then? Of course. And then so then does that mean Pete? Because Pete likes to take on tour. So how would that?

We've been told that the first years it's okay to go away a bit ah yes so i think the plan is yeah school and going away when there's a tour and then when they don't let us do that anymore well Peter stops touring i was thinking i was thinking we just we could just she going to learn a lot on tour. We can already deal cars and change guitar strings. For a job. Yeah, I would say we just drag her out of school and take her on a ride, you know what I mean? Yeah, that is an option. Pete wants to be called daddy, not papa as well.

I know, I love papa though. I don't know, that's her choice. No question. We can develop like gigs at schools. She's sleeping well huh? Yeah she woke up early though and then she went back to bed. Seven. There we go. That's a real insight into family life on the bus. Where we live is very rural. They've had a lot of problems with demographic changes. Everyone goes to Paris or La Havre.

So there's been problems with schools closing. By the time she's a school age, there might not even be a school anymore in the village. Which means, I don't know, I'll drive to La Havre. I bet you never thought 20 years ago that you'd be worrying about demographic changes affecting your local schools. I've always done my bit for the local community.

Do a fundraiser to keep the school going. Certain members of our local community back in East London, I put their kids to a college room. If she was brilliant at football, would she play for France or England? Well, what would that be the best dilemma to have? Well, I could talk about that. dilemma to have? Wow, I can talk about that. I mean, the French kit is fucking cool. And yet, you know, the three lions or leopards as they are, actually, little historical fact, maybe but who knows what I

mean, the way politics is going these days, anyway, the two countries could have merged by then. Because you play for Ireland as well? Yeah. Have you got Irish? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Wow. That'd be such a problem to have.

I mean, that'd be really, that'd be my dream. I had this chat with a French granddad. He's like, oh, what? A footballer? No, no, no, no, no, no. This is going to be a doctor or a lawyer. Do you know what I mean? And I was like, that'd be the ultimate.

More than a musician. Oh yeah. If she mean? And I was like, that'd be the ultimate more than a musician. Oh yeah. If she could play the QPR ladies, it just, would you prefer to be a footballer than a musician? Oh God. Everyone would, wouldn't they? I'd prefer to be a footballer than a comedian. That was my dream really was to be a, to be a footballer.

I just, I didn't have the pace really. Do you know what I mean? Were you, were you good? Was I good? Yeah. I was even, you in my school team. Was I good? Who's excellent.

Oh, it's this guy, hello mate. More people are arriving. He's my friend and manager who actually played semi-professional football. Oh, did he? Were you better than Pete? On my day. On your day. Who did you play for? Worcester City and Telford and sort of just below the conference, really.

Oh, nice. Was you the guy that passed a cup of tea over after he asked for a guitar as well? That's the one, yeah. So we met at school and I tried to get Jio to play bass for the Libby in the very early days and he just signed for Worcester so he didn't come down to London but years later when I was struggling to find someone to trust I got him to manage me and he's still in manager and we run the record label together as well. Strap it. Amazing.

Amazing. Are you enjoying this sort of, now you're sort of on a slightly more positive track with your life. Are you enjoying this run with the Libertines more than the initial one? Or is it you enjoy it in a different way? It's definitely in a different way.

Yeah, everything was so new then, you know, it's just even the idea of being on a, being on a tour bus then, or even like it was new then, you know, just even the idea of being on a being on a tour bus then or even like it was still just, you know, get up on stage with equipment that worked. It was just so everything was new. Now we dreamt so long of, you know, launching the Albion and sailing around the world. And it's a different type of feeling. I think we play better now. It's less sort of frantic and we're all kind of on the same page. I don't know. It's less sort of frantic and we're all kind of on the same page. I don't know. It was almost like, you know,

you see, the way I saw things was different, you know, when you see medieval maps of the world and everything's the wrong shape, and everything's just a blob, because most world was unmapped and uncharted, you know, that was like, how I see it those days in my head, it's just like a, an amorphous, bulbous, Petri dish, I don't know, but now everything's a bit more mapped out. Yeah. Do you talk about it as a band? Do you ever sit around and reminisce? Yeah, we do. We do. Which is why I started this, I put together a little, I know it's a bit weird to do a fanzine for yourself. It's more of a, it's called

weird to do a fanzine for yourself. It's more of a, it's called Pull On Strap and it's sort of a libertines what I did because Carl is very difficult. He doesn't really like to talk in the morning and so I left a typewriter on the bus and we were communicating by written missives for the best part of the tour and I put them in there and there's lyrics and artwork and... You made your own Libertines fanzine! Basically yeah and it's got some fan stuff in there like a picture... And messages to each other in the mornings? Yeah a picture of some kids through on stage, six-year-old fan and short stories about a pub in Ireland and it's called Onstrap, they're 10 pounds each. You can only get them by post though.

There's no online content. If you could- Is that your address? No, it's not my address. It's a local bistro who said I could use their PO box. So how do you order one of these fanzines? I just splash the address up on the screen if you could. Yeah, so the Onstrap fanzine care of, what is it? The heavy horse.

That's my nom de plume, the heavy horse. The heavy horse hotel and then we can screenshot that and post it. Hotel Le Hain, Rouge, General Leclerc, 76690, Etretat, Normandy, France. But I was looking through that and there's a lot in there that touches on the sentimental, but also kind of analyzes our relationship. It's quite cryptic, but it's all in there. Do you know what I mean? Oh, and you sending these out yourself, Pete? I sell them. Actually, I, my wife walks around and sells them at the gigs and I sort of do a

reading from them and then I, I point her out and she, cause it's cash only. So speaking of the England flag, I've got the, I've got Gladys as the Normandy lion. Oh, amazing. And you've got the I've got Gladys as the Normandy lion Amazing dog, and you've got a new album out. I got a man called felt better alive Yeah, the single felt better alive as well single of the same name yet What's the process of writing and recording an album these days for you? Is is that is the family all around you while you're recording the album? Yeah, and generally when I'm writing, unless I'm writing with someone else, it'll just be a stolen night.

You know what I mean? I'll go down at two in the morning and just, you know what I mean? Try and tempt the muses. But you know, it's funny. She's been, May's been in, always been in the recording. We forgot, there's a lovely recording studio called Femme de Gréstand in Normandy. And they give us a really good rate and it's an old hippie couple there and he's got loads of vintage cars and motorbikes they've

kind of got a swamp that circles their studio and in the summer it's perfect for the dogs and for the babby they're just in this safe space but there's you know there's wild pigs and and deer and badges. So the dog have a good time and Billy May has been there four or five times. I feel quite productive since if you think she was born in the months between me writing the Libs album and writing the solo album, which sort of merged a little bit, a lot of the songs I'm using for this solo album, basically they didn't want for the Liberties album, but you know what I mean, they're lost

because there's some fucking tunes. Yeah. So it was quite a productive creative period. I think having kids can increase productivity because you really appreciate time. Yeah. Do you know what I mean? Because it's taken away from you.

So you have that, if you have a few hours to go and do something and you go, actually, you know, I love writing songs. So, you know, it's an enjoyable thing when you've got too much time, sometimes you take it for granted. So you can sort of capitalise. Cause I don't know if it's the same with comedy.

I can sit at a desk and try and write, but nothing comes. But out of nowhere, a joke will appear or a routine will appear. And then I think, oh, that's amazing. It sort of just drops into my head. Is that the same for you with songwriting or do you have to sit down and work at it? They're the sacred moments when that does happen, when a song just seems to appear from somewhere else, you know, fully formed, they're the magic moments. I don't normally like to

analyze these things too much, do you know what I mean? If I'm writing lyrics, not easy, but it comes to me easier than writing a whole song. So, but quite often, if I don't write the lyrics and the melody at the same time, it just won't work as a song. It'll feel forced. Do you know? I mean, that's the worst thing in the world, which is why really I've started doing the, the magazine because I've got so many things that just never been

able to get into songs, the work is fiction put them somewhere. The work is fiction and poetry. And so I think I'm going to enjoy them. This is just a prototype I'm selling at the moment, but I'm going to. That's got to be a book, surely. Well, I'm thinking of just, you know, I don't know how these things work. In my toilet. I've one each. Yeah, one for each of your toilet. Yeah, exactly. It's a fair swap.

You know, I mean, maybe get a bit of a sell a bit of advertising space. I could make a go at this. You know what I mean? And a magazine. You sell a bit of advertising space, I could make a go with this. You know what I mean? Are you thinking of getting into publishing? I'm in publishing. It's already there. Yeah. I know you don't like to overanalyze it, but is there an example of a song that came fully formed, the most fully formed that just came out of nowhere that you can think of? Was there one that stands out? Yeah, something like You're My Waterloo or Musiqn Oyskowel, which turned out to be quite big songs, you know what I mean? But that was just, I can distinctly remember sat in the basement flat in Camden Road, it

would have been like 1998 and they just came. Yeah. Bang, they came and the weird thing, well, when I played them to Carl, he picked up the other guitar and immediately wrote the killer riff for each of them immediately. Oh wow. That happens a lot with me and Carl, which is fortunate, you know what I mean, because he can't be in my company for too long, you know what I mean.

So it has to happen fast or it won't happen at all. And do you like, looking back on that time, it was such an exciting time. I know you've said it was kind of amorphous and stuff, but like, did you realize at the time how iconic and kind of important that band was to people and that kind of period of time was? It was definitely felt strong connections we made to individuals.

I didn't, it's hard to gauge these things on a wider level, but those early shows, there was such a, that's what we were looking for. We were looking for our tribe. You know what I mean? For one expression. In fact, that's probably the perfect expression. That's what we're looking for wherever we went. We wanted to meet our people. Do you know what I mean? I think I'd always had a sense of even now, I mean, we went to school at the height of Britpop, wouldn't it? It was Oasis, Ocean Coliseum, and Pulp,

and I loved them bands, but, and they were really popular, but you still had to sort of watch yourself, do you know what I mean? Going around dressed in denim flares and eyeliner and stuff like that, you know what I mean? It was England, you know, it was provincial England, and you know what I mean?

You'll get a fat lip. So it was just, we were trying to meet people that wouldn't headbutt you if you had eyeliner on basically. I mean, that a few, you know what I mean? It was, or if they did headbutt you, it was in a nice way. It was in like a moshy way. Do you know what I mean? It was sort of actually the mosh pit. And then those early shows in, in London just, just seemed like to be a magnet for every chicken, punk and modern suede head that was still believed in British rock and roll, you know what I mean? And it's amazing how many,

I met a kid last night actually in Bristol, we played Trinity Church in Bristol. So I met a kid who I remember from way back then, he was like, he would have been 15, 16, and I'd have been 19, 20, he used to come to order all those little guerrilla gigs. You know, I hadn't seen him for years. You know, we'd never, no, I never had his phone number and the things, but I

felt such a kinship to him and I met him last night and he's a full grown man now. And he's working as a social in social care with kids with disabilities. And it was just, it's beautiful to see. He was parking his car outside the gig. And, and he was like, all right, all right, Pete. And, and he was like, I, I Pete, and I've looked at my phone. I know that face. And then I could try and imagine him with it, with hair, with a lever jacket, with the Libetines written on it and it's not, and it's like, are you Hey Richie?

Cause that was his like his code name on the old, he used to have like a fan forum and days before social media forums. I forgot about forums. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And he was Hey Richie and I was the heavy horse. And I was like, I'm doing this fanzine and then I know, I know, I heard about that. I'll be expecting contributions for you. And I'd like, like, I'm not trying to recreate anything, but if I can get him writing again,

for example, because he was a great, you know, I mean, he had an amazing turn of phrase and he'd always be going around watching different bands and then writing about them on the forum. And, and all that stuff is lost forever. You know what I mean? All that writing. Yeah. Although he says he used to, he used to save it all.

So that'd be, might be an interesting thing for the magazine to if you can find an old libertines forum that you could reprint. I wouldn't be able to reprint. So I used to be stupidly honest on that forum, do you know what I mean? And there was loads of embarrassing stuff in there. It was quite iconic. There's that clip of you as a young-

I was about to say the same thing. Older teenager where you're queuing for an Oasis album and you get Vox pox on the street and it's the most eloquent sort of amazing description of Oasis and it's obviously like, you know, so Pete Doherty. Do you remember that? And have you seen it since? I have seen it since. Yeah, I've seen it pops up from time to time. Yeah, I do remember it as well, because I was working at Hanley's,

Hanley's, the toy store pop-up shop in a place. It was called the Chuckadero Center. Don't know if it's called that, it was Piccadilly Circus. Yeah, right. Yeah. I used to stand outside with a big water bucket demonstrating wind up frogs and bath toms. We used to have couple of cutouts in Marilyn Monroe, Kylie. And then one day the shift manager put in the couple of cutouts of Oasis. And I was like, what?

How come you got them? Yeah. I said, is they're doing an album launch? I did an album launch on Oxford Street and we're like, you know, helping to promote. I was like, all right, so I got the cardboard cutouts. And I just wanted to get, you know, in the papers and say, I got the couple of cuts and went past the Virgin mega store on the back of the open back bus with them.

All the paparazzi's in there waiting for racist. And I kept going past. No one was interested. So I went in and then they did a Vox pop. So somewhere there's footage. is footage. But somewhere there's footage of me with cardboard cut out. Oh, he was walking in front of the cameras of it as well. Yeah, no, I just kept my eyes up and down trying to get on the telly. Did you meet them then? Or would you just outside when they

were doing the launch? Did you get in and meet them? I didn't know. No, I don't even think they were there. Actually, it was just an album. Maybe they were. I did see him Brown Rock Street once though around that time. So I was living at my Nan's in Crooklewood in the summer and I was working in the the toy shop amongst other things and I saw Ian Brown once and I was walking back to get the bus and I was like, Ian! And he sort of looked and then I'm sort of running after him and I didn't really know what to say. So I was like, you're in brownie went, no, I'm not. No, I'm not. You got the wrong, piss off. I can't imagine you doing frog demonstrations

in front of a toy shop. Were you sort of knowingly enjoying that? But I imagine you as a teenager might have been quite, you know, you're so well read and intelligent. You may have thought that was like, what am I doing here? Like, how did you approach that job? It was hard to, I was always jumping from job to job all the time. There were some interesting characters there, basically a lot of foreign kids

in London and you know what I mean? So I was always falling in love. It's probably the reason I got a job there. I fell in love with the girl that was demonstrating the frogs before me. The problem was because it was all a pop-up shop and it was just a million tourists going past by the minute. They played the same song. Oh, time. Then you can wear it. So I had to listen to can't get you out of my head by Kylie for my whole shift.

It just went around and around and around and around. Oh, I'm sorry. This day when I hear that song, I automatically go into sales pitch mode and start trying to sell people back. Do you when I hear that song, I automatically go into sales pitch mode and start trying to sell people back. Do you want to hear that clip? Have you heard it? You heard it recently. Here we go.

Good morning. You've got your cross talk, you're sorted. How long have you been here? At least 17 minutes. All right, you're a newcomer to this. Oh yeah. And can you sum up Oasis for me in one sentence? Yeah, well I subscribe to the Umberto Eco view that Noel Gallagher's a poet and Liam's a town crier.

I've always seen that as a perfect combination, you know. Do it again, that's brilliant. You just look at the camera and do that. I subscribe to the Umberto Eco view that Liam's a town crier and Noel's a poet and that's always for me a perfect combination. If there was one word to sum this up, what would that word be? Krausers. That guy, I don't know who that presenter is, he cannot fucking believe his life. Eddie Temple Mori kids.

Is that Eddie Temple Mori? I took him up on that and I went to MTV Europe, it just opened. Yeah. And I went and said on the door, I said that I'd been promised a job. And they gave me a shift in the mail room. Did they?

Two days, someone was ill. And I got two days in the mail room and obviously I thought this is it. This is like my stuff. Yeah. Presenting an MTV, get me an MTV show and then nothing. Oh, wiggly wiggly.

Oh, and here's the end. The baby's up. That's so funny, at least 17 minutes in it. It's such a funny line. Trousers. Who is Umberto Eco, do you know? He's a novelist and a philosopher, yeah. Oh, and here it is.

Oh, hi, oh, she's so cute. Who's this? Hello. Is that Papa? Papa. Papa. Oh, she's just woken up hasn't she? She doesn't look unlike you Pete, I'll be honest.

She's got the hair. The poor thing, the poor thing. Oh. And so what's the rest of your day gonna involve Pete? Nappies and feeding and we'll go for a little walk. We're right on the river here. Yeah. I know the car park looks pretty grim,

but we're right on the river. We go for a little walkies. We find a park and we did a gig. Yeah, gig. And when you speak to her, you go a bit French. De quoi? Oh, c'est normal, les Françaises. Et on parle français ensemble.

Oui. She's so cute. Oh, what a lovely kid. It's been an absolute joy to speak to you. We'll let you get on with your day. What's the album called? Felt Better Alive. Felt Better Alive.

And when's it out? You're not going to know that, are you? May. May. May. And are you doing an acoustic tour of that at the moment? Are you doing a bigger tour of it? I'm doing an acoustic tour at the moment and then in May when it comes out I'll be doing

some shows with the full band for it including Mike Joyce from The Smiths, Sandra. From The Smiths? Yeah. Oh wow. Oh look. We'll let you get on Pete. Thanks so much mate. Brilliant book by the way.

Oh thank you very much. We'll order a fanzine. Yeah and we'll put the, I mean we promote a fanzine. I'll just do it. And we'll put the, I mean, we promote the fanzine more than the album, which is probably a mistake, but in May. Love, fellas. Cheers, bye. Bye bye.

Pete Doherty. He's such a sweet bloke, isn't he? Yeah, he's so funny. It's nice to see him a bit more measured and happy. Yeah, I wouldn't have wanted to do that interview 15 years ago. I mean, I would have wanted to, but I don't think it would have lasted that long. I don't think any of it would have been broadcastable. But I'd have loved to have been there.

Do you know what? I'd have taken Michael up on the offer when he tabled it. I would have shitted my pants. Yeah, that would have been a bit extreme. That was great, love that. Good luck to Pete and his new album. And the Libertines album's out as well. I think they're doing gigs in the summer as well. They are, yeah. Josh, I'll see you Tuesday.

I'll see you then. Bye. Bye.