With this series of gigs already rescheduled, hopes of Pete Doherty actually showing up for all three dates at the Rhythm Factory weren’t too high. The host of assembled diehard fans in the queue on this last night didn’t seem to mind though, discussing memories of his last gig here, which apparently included a slurred rendition of three old favourites, followed by some karaoke from the crowd.

Finally appearing at 1am, Doherty takes to the stage solo – just him, his acoustic guitar and a lit cigarette, which staff dutifully ignore. Beginning with crowd favourite and Libertines classic ‘Music When The Lights Go Out’, Doherty is greeted with customary cheers. Other Libertines favourites ‘Time For Heroes’ and ‘Campaign Of Hate’ get the crowd pushing, shoving and singing along; almost taking over, karaoke-style for ‘Up The Bracket.’ Unlike his audience however, Pete seems a little tired, and perhaps is missing his band.

However, he does stray from his Libertines tunes with a calm rendition of Oasis’s ‘Hello’, another sing-along classic to add to the pile… It is worth asking at this stage – is Pete becoming a caricature of himself and a visual rent-a-song? He may be one of the creators of some of the catchiest and lyrically great songs in UK pop’s recent history, but surely it’s time to move on. Pete – play something we don’t know!

Ilana Conway