‘Don’t let it be the Tories’ Pete Doherty tells Libertines fans

Pete Doherty, seen here at O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire, told a Manchester audience "don't let it be the Tories" before the general election. Picture: Anthony Devlin/PA Archive/PA Images - Credit: PA Archive/PA Images

Pete Doherty has told cheering crowds at a Libertines concert that in this election, ‘don’t let it be the Tories’.

The rock star made the comment after he returned for an encore for his concert in Manchester’s O2 Victoria Warehouse, where fans had been chanting “oh, Jeremy Corbyn”.

“In this twisted society we live in, you’ve got to go out and work and graft to pay your rent,” Doherty told the crowd.

“And sometimes they say you have to bend over and just take it, but don’t let it be the Tories.”

He added that he knows a “really kind-hearted” friend who told him if he saw Boris Johnson “lying and dying in the street” he “wouldn’t f***ing spit on him”.

Tonight in Manchester, among thousands of people singing 'Oh @jeremycorbyn' - @petedoherty of @libertines says 'Don't let it be the Tories'

 pic.twitter.com/gG7PyhG0FZ
— Kallum Nolan  (@kallumnolan) December 11, 2019

The moment, which was captured by Labour councillor Kallum Nolan, was greeted by huge approval from the crowd.

“The crowd went wild, it was as if they were waiting for Pete or Carl [Libertines member Barât] to mention the election,” Nolan told the PA news agency.

“As you can see from the video, the place erupted when Pete said ‘not the Tories’. He said something about spitting on Boris Johnson as well which also got a good reaction.”

The Manchester councillor said that the “oh Jeremy Corbyn” chants rang out “whenever there was a quiet moment” in the concert.

“It’s clear which way British music culture is swinging in this election, and that’s to Labour,” he said, adding he may be “slightly biased”.