Childhood & Early life
Pete Doherty was born on 12 March 1979, in Hexham, Northumberland to Peter John Doherty and Jacqueline Michels. Owing to both parents working in British army, he lived mostly in army garrisons with his siblings, Amy Jo and Emily.
He began playing guitar from the young age of 11. After showcasing his brilliance in studies, he won a poetry competition when he was just 16.
Post his A-levels, destiny took him to London (from Dorset) where he got his first job of filling graves in Willesden Cemetery.
In 1997, to pursue his interests in music he dropped out of the English literature course at Queen Mary after his first year.
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Career
In 1997, bonded with a common interest, Pete Doherty and his fellow musician Carl Barat formed a rock band, 'The Libertines'. The band gave many singles and gigs between 2002 and 2004 besides their first album, 'Up the Brackets', which was a major hit.
His relationship with other band members soon deteriorated to the level that he served two months sentence for burgling Barat's flat in 2003. But post his release from jail, they reconciled to gift their fans, 'The Freedom Gig' at the Tap 'n' Tin pub in Chatham, Kent.
After the release of their second album, 'The Libertines' in 2004, the band got dissolved.
In April 2004, Doherty, in collaboration with Peter "Wolfman" Wolfe, a poet and songwriter, gave a top 10 single, 'For Lovers'.
Alongside Libertines, he also recorded for many single songs like ' Down to the Underground' in 2004 and 'Their Way', in 2005, which earned him more fame and success.
From the ashes of his first band he formed another one, 'Babyshambles' which has released three albums to date: 'Down in Albion' in November 2005, 'Shotter's Nation' in October 2007 and 'Sequel to the prequel' in September 2013.
In 2006, in order to raise funds for Strummerville, he performed with other artists and bands on the single, 'Janie Jones'.
From 2008-09, he performed a number of guerrilla gigs and solo gigs at different places like Royal Albert Hall, Grimsby Auditorium etc.
His solo album 'Grace/Wasteland' and a single, 'Last of the English Roses' were released in March 2009.
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In 2010, 'The Libertines' reunited to perform together for the Reading and Leeds Festivals in 2010. They also released their third album, 'Anthems for Doomed Youth', on 11 September 2015.
In March 2015, he recorded a single, 'Flags of the Old Regime', and donated his earnings from it to the 'Amy Winehouse Foundation'. He worked as a musician for a 2015 British documentary film, 'Amy', based on the life of Amy Winehouse.
In May 2016, he shared his new track, ‘The Whole World Is Our Playground', on 'EUDAIMONIA TOUR'.
In November 2016, he founded another band titled, 'The Puta Madres' which performed a number of shows and gigs in London and Europe for next two years.
He released an album 'Hamburg Demonstrations,' in December 2016, produced by Johann Scheerer.
In 2018, he performed in various shows and gigs like 'Sharabang' with 'The Libertines' band at 'Wheels and Fins Festival' in Kent and a new-year gig at Cardiff.
On 26th April 2019, he is releasing his new self-titled album with 'Peter Doherty and The Puta Madres'. The first single titled ‘Who’s Been Having You Over’ has already been made available.
Other Works
In 2007, Pete Doherty featured 14 of his paintings at an exhibition at London's Bankrobber Gallery. Next year, he showcased another exhibition titled, 'Art of the Albion' at Galerie Chappe in Paris.
He also gained praise for his modelling assignment done for the fashion campaign of Roberto Cavalli's Fall 2007/2008.
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He played the lead role in Sylvie Verheyde's movie, 'Confession of a Child of the Century' based on the 'La Confession d'un Enfant du Siècle', an autobiographical novel by Alfred de Musset. It was screened at the Cannes Film Festival, 2012.
Major Works
Pete Doherty has written two books titled: 'The Books of Albion: The Collected Writings' in 2007 and 'From Albion To Shangri-La' in 2014; published by Orion Books and Thin Man Press respectively.
The first one is a collection of his personal journals from his struggling days in London. It is a compelling and intimate collection of lyrics, photo collages, poems, personal reflections, thoughts and drawings. The second book is an uncensored compilation of his 2008 - 2013 journals and tour diaries.
Family & Personal life
From January 2005- July 2007, Pete Doherty had an on-off relationship with Kate Moss.
In October 2007, he got engaged to Irina Lăzăreanu, a fashion model, but it did not last long.
He has children with singer Lisa Moorish and model Lindi Hingston, named Astile (born 2003) and Aisling (born 2011) respectively.
He had troubled relationship with his parents due to his drug problems. His mother did publish a book based on this aspect of his life, 'Pete Doherty: My Prodigal Son' (2007).
He underwent treatment for drug addiction in rehab centres like 'Wat Tham Krabok', Thailand but failed to leave his habit permanently.
He has also been found guilty of various drug offences resulting in his multiple arrests and other legal actions.
Trivia
Right from his young days, Pete Doherty was very much influenced by the concept of 'Albion' (a place without any authority or defined set of rules). It is a recurrent theme in his works, be it a song lyrics like 'Down in the Albions' or painting exhibition 'Art of the Albions' or collection of his diaries, 'the Book of Albion' or his residence ' The Albion Rooms'.
He is a big fan of the football team, Queens Park Rangers. 'All Quiet on the Western Avenue' is his dedication to the club.
He became an honorary patron of the University Philosophical Society in 2009.
