The Libertines arrived in the late '90s like a raging bull in a tired post-Britpop china store and introduced the world to a new band of London bohemians, whose scruffy tunes, red military tunics, opiate poetry and “live now pay never” lifestyle defined the millennial angst of the early '80s. At the heart of the band was the bromance between the Jagger/Richards of the ramshackle Music Hall, Peter Doherty and Carl Barat, aided by the rock-solid rhythm twins John Hassall and Gary Powell.
 

The Libertines' origins date back to 1997, in the London smog. Peter Doherty and Carl Barat met while the latter was studying drama at Brunel University and moved into an apartment together in Camden, North London. The chemistry between them gave birth to all kinds of music, poetry and mayhem.
 

The Libertines signed to the legendary independent label Rough Trade in 2001. After signing, they moved into an apartment in Bethnal Green, East London, which they dubbed “The Albion Rooms” (a room that became the venue for many of their early guerrilla gigs).
 

TheLibertines' debut album, Up The Bracket, preceded by the seminal singles What a Waster and Up The Bracket, was released in autumn 2002 and produced by Mick Jones, of the band's spiritual forebears, The Clash.
 

As a touring band, the group became one of the busiest on the circuit, playing hundreds of gigs not only in the UK and Europe, but also in Japan and the USA.
 

Their self-titled second album, The Libertines, featuring two of the band's signature songs, Can't Stand Me Now and What Became of the Likely Lads, went straight to #1 on its release in 2004, and touring continued apace.
 

Then there was a break. Over the next few years, The Libertines remained on ice, with individual members trying their hand at new bands: Peter Doherty - Babyshambles; Carl Barat & Gary Powell - Dirty Pretty Things; and John Hassall - Yeti.
 

In August 2010, the four members of The Libertines reunited for a series of concerts, including at the Reading and Leeds festivals. The reformation concerts were enthusiastically received by press and fans alike, although the future of The Libertines was unclear, with both Peter and Carl having embarked on solo adventures.
 

In April 2014, The Libertines announced that they would reform once again to headline a huge concert in London's Hyde Park; the success of this event led to further concerts, which sold out in record time.
 

In 2015, The Libertines sign a contract with Virgin/EMI. They record their third studio album with producer Jake Gosling in Thailand. The resulting album, Anthems For Doomed Youth, enters the UK album chart at number three, and the band tours the world, playing venues large and small and headlining festivals.
 

In 2020, the Libertines ventured into the hotel business, opening The Albion Rooms, a magnificent new hotel/studio in Margate.
 

Any bookie worth his salt would have given you little chance of seeing this quartet survive for more than a month or two, given the edge-of-your-seat lifestyle the Libertines chose to lead, but two decades on, our Byronic heroes, though older and wiser, are still fighting the good fight and making music just as vital as their astonishing beginnings.