Pete With The Law For A Change

• 21st Feb 2005

Pete Doherty will be allowed to play a gig at the Brixton Academy in south London as a one-off change to his bail conditions.

The former Libertines singer appeared before London's Snaresbrook Crown Court for a preliminary hearing. He is accused of robbery and blackmail.

He was arrested earlier this month following an alleged dispute with documentary maker Max Carlish at the Rookery Hotel in Islington, north London reports ITV.com.

Also detained was Alan Wass, 23, guitarist with four-piece band Left Hand, who faces the same charges.

Their lawyers indicated they would be pleading not guilty at a plea and direction hearing on April 18 and that there is likely to be an application to dismiss the case.

Doherty's lawyer Eamonn Sherry QC asked the judge, Mr Justice Radford, for a variation in his client's bail conditions.

He requested Doherty's surety be reduced from £150,000 by £50,000 and that his curfew of 10pm to 7am be changed on Tuesday night to midnight to 7am to enable him to play a gig. The prosecution in the case offered no objection.

The judge agreed to lowering the surety and also to allowing Doherty two more hours out tomorrow night provided requests to change bail conditions was not a “too regular occurrence”.