The Libertines, who have seemed remarkably organised and professional of late, returned to form on Thursday night when they pulled out of a gig hours after they were due on stage.
The band were scheduled to begin their set at the Electric Ballroom in London at 9.15pm, but at 11.30pm – with no sign of them – a spokesman told the crowd: ““Due to an emergency – a medical situation – tonight’s show is being postponed.” He said a new date would be announced on Friday.
The band later issued a statement on their Facebook page: “Due to unforeseen circumstances tonight the Libertines have had to postpone their sold out shows at the Electric Ballroom in Camden and at the Ritz in Manchester tomorrow night. Peter, Carl, John and Gary apologise whole heartedly to their fans and will reschedule both shows as soon as possible. This will not effect any of The Libertines other commitments. HQ.”
The Libertines had been playing a series of small-scale club shows in support of their current album, Anthems for Doomed Youth – their first for 11 years. They had already played in Glasgow, Nottingham and Bristol, with London and Manchester due to be the final shows of the tour.
Meanwhile, two pieces of Pete Doherty memorabilia – his prison journal and a notebook – are being sold by a rare-book seller, NME reports. The pair are available for £4,250 and £4,750 respectively, and reportedly contain drafts of Doherty’s novel, song lyrics, illustrations and photos.
“Both the prison journal and the notebook are extremely interesting and except for minor soiling they are both in excellent condition,” according to Pom Harrington of the book dealer Peter Harrington. “They give a deep insight into the inner thoughts and life of Pete Doherty and will appeal to Pete Doherty and the Libertines’ fans as well as anyone connected with the music industry, and especially those interested in songwriting.”
