[8] While living in Dorset, aged 11, Doherty began playing guitar, originally in an attempt to impress a female classmate, Emily Baker.

[14] After his A-levels, he moved to his grandmother's flat in London – where he said he felt 'destined' to be – and got a job filling graves in Willesden Cemetery, although most of his time was spent reading and writing while sitting on gravestones.

Doherty and Barât formed a band called the Libertines in the late 1990s, although it was not until 2002, with the release of their debut studio album Up the Bracket, that they began to achieve widespread mainstream success.

He attended the alternative detox centre Wat Tham Krabok, a temple in Thailand, famous for its rehabilitation programme for crack and heroin users.

Despite the success of the single, which was nominated for a prestigious Ivor Novello Award for songwriting,[30] Doherty and Wolfman received relatively little money, having already sold the publishing rights for a small sum in a pub.

In May 2020, during COVID-19 lockdown, he provided vocals for the single "Uncle Brian's Abattoir" released as Trampolene featuring Peter Doherty.

[41] On New Year's Eve 2005, Doherty held a guerrilla gig in his North London flat where he showcased some of his solo works, many of which later leaked onto the internet.

[23] 31 March and 1 April 2006 Doherty was performing two surprising solo gigs, his first in mainland Europe, at the NonStop Kino pornographic cinema and venue in Graz, Austria, after he failed to turn up for an earlier arrangement in January.

For this occasion he produced, at the suggestion of Bettina Aichbauer, friend of Doherty and owner of the NonStop Kino, a film with the title Spew It Out Your Soul, which he showed on-screen during his performance.

[47] In May 2016, Doherty was joined on his 'Eudaimonia' tour by Drew McConnell (bass guitar), Miki Beavis (violin), Katia de Vidas (keyboards), Stephany Kaberian (accordion) and Rafa (drums).

[50] In early December 2016, Doherty released his second solo studio album Hamburg Demonstrations, which had been recorded in the city over a six-month period, using mostly session musicians.

[52] In 2021, Doherty teamed up with French musician Frédéric Lo [fr] to release "The Fantasy Life of Poetry & Crime", a single inspired by Maurice Leblanc, the creator of the fictional gentleman thief and detective Arsène Lupin.

[53] In June 2006, Doherty announced that he had signed a deal with Orion Books to publish his journals, in which he had recorded poetry, drawings and photos over the course of his career.

[62] Following in the footsteps of model and ex-fiancée Kate Moss, Doherty became the face of Roberto Cavalli's Fall 2007–2008 fashion advertising campaign.

Peter Doherty and the Puta Madres played a gig in Argentina, followed by a week of shows in France including two nights for the reopening of the Bataclan.

[67] They played Kentish Town Forum in London and Albert Hall, Manchester in December 2016 and several dates across Europe in February and March 2017.

Following European and South American tours and festival appearances, the band recorded their debut studio album in France during the summer of 2018.

[68] The self-titled studio album was released on 26 April 2019[69] and after instore signings the band set off on a UK and European tour.

On the Babyshambles debut studio album Down in Albion, there is a track entitled "À rebours", which is significantly influenced by the novel of the same name by Joris-Karl Huysmans.

Doherty and Barât shared a run-down flat in London, at 112a Teesdale Street, Bethnal Green, affectionately known as 'The Albion Rooms'.

[94] In 2003, while Doherty's first band the Libertines were performing in Japan without him, he broke into Carl Barât's flat and stole various items, including an old guitar and a laptop computer.

[72] In late 2007, a photo was published in several newspapers of Doherty allegedly forcing his pet cat to inhale from a crack pipe.

[106] On 8 April 2008, Doherty was jailed for 14 weeks for breaching a probation order after a string of brushes with the law for drugs and driving offences.

On 18 April, he was moved to a private area of Wormwood Scrubs prison after learning that fellow inmates were planning to attack him.

Following his release from court, he was escorted by officers to the nearest police station and re-arrested for possession of a controlled substance, later revealed to be heroin.

According to The Guardian, Doherty had earlier "raised a fascist salute as a joke at a concert in Spain last year, and the Libertines were criticised for a 2004 song, Arbeit Macht Frei, a phrase that was emblazoned above the entrances to concentration camps including Auschwitz.

"[114] On 11 March 2010, Lowestoft magistrates fined Doherty £500 and banned him from driving for 12 months for allowing his Daimler car to be used uninsured by his manager.

[116] In June 2010, Doherty was refused entry into the United States after spending ten hours in detention in John F. Kennedy International Airport, despite having a visa.

[129] Doherty, who was not called to give evidence at the inquest, was also seen on CCTV footage passing by Blanco's body and jogging away from the scene before an ambulance arrived.

[129] An eight-month BBC Newsnight investigation in 2012 concluded that CCTV evidence suggested Blanco had been dropped from the balcony rather than jumped or slipped.