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Times
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Times
Peter Doherty: Felt Better Alive review — charming poetry and silliness
Two decades of wild living, often played out for the fascination of the tabloids, have done their work on 46-year-old Pete (now Peter) Doherty. The co-leader of the Libertines, the band that for much of the Noughties found the missing link between the Clash and Chas & Dave, revealed earlier this year that if he doesn't do something about his rich diet, excessive boozing and cigarette habit, his toes will have to be amputated. This horrific scenario comes after Doherty finally managed to quit heroin, leaving behind the carousing of years past with Kate Moss and the like for a quiet life in Normandy with his wife, Katia, and their toddler daughter. Now comes an album that sounds like a visit to the last chance saloon, a final throw of the dice, an attempt to get his life back on track before it is all too late. And it is delivered with the mix of insouciance, resignation, poetry and silliness that has always been at the heart of Doherty's charm. • Peter Doherty interview: 'I can't wear normal shoes at the moment' 'I tiptoed around gravestones digging up old songs, felt better, oh my,' he sings over a haunted fairground rhythm on Felt Better Alive, one of a handful of songs in which Doherty addresses his life's calling as a salvation from himself. With its elegant strings and bright melody, Pot of Gold starts out as a seemingly innocent lullaby to his daughter, before Doherty reveals more venal intentions. 'If that lullaby is a hit, dad can buy you loads of cool shit,' he sings, also suggesting that if his child is silent for a few moments more, he can write 'the kind of thing they pay millions for'. Rarely has such naked intention been laid out so barely in lyrical form. You wouldn't think Doherty, being a beloved indie rock singer of ill repute, should be worrying about money, but it turns out that all those years of addiction, which included three spells in jail, did not lead to the most prudent investment choices. 'I'm in serious financial shtuck,' Doherty told The Times last year, before revealing that he was facing a £200,000 tax bill, a black hole of debt for the Libertines' residential Margate studio the Albion Rooms, and three grand a month in child support for two older children from previous relationships. 'Why do you think I'm doing this tour?' he elaborated. Doherty is equally honest about his motivations on this album, while infusing it with a romantic sensibility that stops things from getting unpleasantly transactional. • Pete Doherty live review — you can't help but be charmed Prêtre de la Mer and Stade Océan, eulogies to Doherty's local priest and Normandy's football stadium respectively, take inspiration from his adopted country and have a rollicking Gallic quality, equal parts maudlin and celebratory. Sometimes Doherty's attempts to write his way out of trouble reek of desperation — Fingee is a bit of nonsense poetry about not much at all — but in the main there is ragged appeal, as Doherty has matured from public enemy No 1 to an ageing roué. It's a role that suits him. (Strap Originals)★★★★☆ Follow @timesculture to read the latest reviews
Times
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Times
Amanda Holden trying to get adulterers back together? Yes, really
Amanda Holden does not look terribly different now, at the age of 54, than she looked when she made the arguably unhinged decision to marry Les Dennis at the age of 22. Some Mephistophelian pact was entered into, obviously. It is hard to pinpoint the reasons for her enormous success: turn on your television right now and you can probably find her in five or six shows, delivering herself of opinions that, while vapid, are enunciated with sufficient fluency to make them sound almost astute. She is attractive, of course, which helps. She also understands the market and is apt to pop up in the tabloids advising everybody on how to have really 'hot sex' and other similar encomiums. Hers is a telegenic naughtiness mediated
Daily Mail
07-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Crocodile Dundee star Paul Hogan breaks his silence on his troubled son Chance: 'He's a terrible person'
Australian comedy icon Paul Hogan has opened up about his troubled son Chance. The Crocodile Dundee star, 85, was chatting to Today show entertainment editor Richard Wilkins on Wednesday about a new cut of the iconic film. Paul, who now lives in the US, admitted to Richard that while he would love to make a permanent move Down Under, he is staying stateside for his youngest son Chance, 27. 'It's where I belong,' Paul replied to Richard who asked what it was like to be back in Australia to promote the film. Richard then pressed the star on if he had considered relocating back to Australia to which Paul replied: 'Oh, tomorrow.' He then admitted he had his reason for staying in Los Angeles. 'I have business reasons and my son to stay in the States for now,' he said. When Richard asked for an update on Paul's troubled son he admitted: '[He's] Alright. 'Better than he gets. He gets a lot of tabloid stuff, but he's a terrible person because he knows they're watching him and he puts something on for them.' Paul shares Chance with ex-wife Linda Kozlowski. He also has five children with his first wife Noelene Edwards - Brett, Clay, Scott, Todd, and Lauren. Paul's comments come after Chance most recently sparked concern for his welfare back in January. The 27-year-old shared concerning videos to his Instagram Stories on Monday which saw him drinking wine and slurring his words as he sat at a table in public. 'This is my life. This is what it's been reduced to,' Chance slurred as he took sips from his wine glass. The camera he angled toward his face and laptop wobbled as he struggled to hold it steady while he spoke. When asked for an update on his troubled son he admitted: '[He's] Alright. Better than he gets'. Also pictured: Paul's ex-wife and Chance's mother Linda Kozlowski He then leaned in close and said: 'Please. Please kill me. I'm begging you.' However, Paul dismissed widespread fears for Chance, back in December. Chance, an aspiring musician who has been based in Venice Beach with his famous father, has frequently made headlines over his erratic behaviour. But when caught up with Paul while he ran errands in Los Angeles last month, the father-of-six said there was nothing to fear. Asked if he was worried about Chance, Paul shook his head casually and smiled before replying: 'Nah.' He continued: 'No. It's a lot of made up stuff and a lot of it he [Chance] does on purpose.' Paul poured cold water on concerns while making a quick trip to a local store and an ATM, which was his first public outing in nine months. The reclusive star appeared friendly and happy to chat despite the rumours and concerns circulating about his son. The movie legend, who's originally from Sydney, left his home country behind following the success of the 1986 action-comedy film Crocodile Dundee. He made the move to settle with his second wife, Linda, in Los Angeles in the '90s. Chance has been living with his father in LA since his parents' divorce in 2014 after 24 years of marriage. In November, troubling photos emerged of Chance buying beer and shuffling around Venice Beach back alleys, near the home he shares with his father. Paul's remarks contradict recent reports that he had been 'worried sick' about his son. The reports emerged after Daily Mail Australia shared shocking images of Chance looking dishevelled in a back alley, taken on November 14.
