forcing the band to play a gig without him. By September, with their second single Up The Bracket giving them a chart hit, it was clear that Doherty's increasing unreliability was linked to his flirtations with heroin and crack cocaine. 'The Libertines had become my whole world, and I suppose Pete was the mate I'd always wanted. But there was a Steptoe And Son side to it. You watch Steptoe and it's brilliantly funny, but it also makes for uncomfortable viewing, because you can always sense the tragedy of their lives. For me and Pete, the tragedy began when he started using those drugs. That's when the dignity of the Libertines went straight out of the window. It started to become dark and squalid. 'Being in a band and getting messed up in order to have a good time, that's one thing. Then there's the kind of trouble that drugs like heroin and crack bring to the party. I didn't want that life. It didn't appeal to me on any level. The bottom line is that it's boring being a junkie ****-up. It probably makes for a great read if you're not involved. Up to a point the chaos of the Libertines was enjoyable for me. Then very sinister agendas took over and it became the opposite of fun.' Following the release of the debut album, Barat opted to take a 'tough love' approach with Doherty, refusing to let him record or perform with the band until he'd completely cleaned