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Pete Doherty and Josh Pugh present 'The Pete Doherty Show'. Credit: Press

Pete Doherty and Josh Pugh present ‘The Pete Doherty Show’. Credit: Press

Pete Doherty and Josh Pugh have spoken to NME about launching their new project The Pete Doherty Show, which features guests including Sleaford Mods‘ Jason Williamson, Eastenders icon Natalie Cassidy, Richard Bacon, comedians Ivo Graham and Jamali Maddix, and many more.

READ MORE: Pete Doherty tells us about the Babyshambles reunion, The Libertines’ next album, and plans to open a second-hand shop

The unlikely duo of The Libertines frontman and the acclaimed comedian have been teasing the new Youtube show on social media for months, with the first episode finally set to land tomorrow (Sunday September 13).

Filmed in The Libertines’ spiritual home of Margate, The Pete Doherty Show sees the Babyshambles man and Pugh exploring the seaside town and meeting locals, interviewing guests from the worlds of music, comedy and the arts, as well as performances from Doherty and musical guests, such as GANS in the first episode. Pugh even attempts Doherty’s legendary viral ‘big breakfast‘ from The Dalby Café.

“It’s a musical and comedy adventure, that we’d like you all to join us for,” Doherty told NME. “We thought if the world needs anything right now, it needs another podcast.”

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Who wants to see @peterdohertyofficial and comedian @joshpughcomic explore the wonders of Margate and interview the likes of @ivo_graham, @sleaford_mods' jason_williamson_, @jamalimaddix, fellow @thelibertines legend @carlbarat78, and even 'Eastenders' icon @natcass1 – all with a little help from Pete's nan? Well you're in luck, as tomorrow @thepetedohertyshow launches.⁣

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Hit the link in bio for an exclusive clip and more from Pete and Josh telling NME what to expect

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Asked how it came together, the frontman replied: “First of all, I just wanted to meet Josh. It wasn’t blackmail, but it was like that couldn’t happen unless we did a show that producers had been talking about. I hated the idea of doing a show, but then they said they had all these amazing guests to interview – who all mysteriously cancelled on the first day. The guests that we did have were amazing.”

Pugh continued: “They’re not who we were promised, but yeah they were good.”

Among the tantalising guests that didn’t come into fruition was a certain Simpsons and Spinal Tap legend.

“I thought Harry Shearer was coming in, so we were all quite excited about that,” shared Doherty. “I was a little bit grumpy and a little bit nervous about it, but we’ll see how it goes. If it is a horrible flop I can say, ‘See? I told you we couldn’t do this’. Then if it’s a success, that dry lack of confidence in it will be what people like.”

Pugh agreed: “I’m not sure you can even have a flop on Youtube. Anyone can upload and I think we’ll be OK. Also, we’re self-producing so if it doesn’t come back that’s our decision.”

Pete Doherty and Josh Pugh present ‘The Pete Doherty Show’. Credit: Press

Check out our full interview with Doherty and Pugh below, where they told us about grilling the guests, Carl Barât worming his way on, and the chances of another season.

NME: Hello Josh and Pete. Now that the show is finally almost upon us, how confident are you feeling?

Doherty: “We must be able to get a hacker to get the numbers up. It can’t be that difficult.”

Pugh: “There must be things we can do with bots. People are really excited to see it, though. I’m just worried that the wait and the lead-in has been so long now that they just have to enjoy it now. I like going through the comments and assuming they’re about me. ‘This beautiful genius got me through my adolescence’. I did what I can.”

Pete, why did you choose Josh to do this with?

Doherty: “He’s funny. You’ll be on a long tour on the bus and it gets to that point at 5am where you’re asking, ‘What’s left to stay up for?’ Someone would always play me Josh’s skits. Have you seen the one about the gaffer? Then someone also told me he played international football for the partially-sighted men’s national team, which was pretty cool. You’ve got this talented comedian with an amazing physical form, then you’ve got Josh too.”

So Josh, you’ve got it all. How did you feel when Pete got in touch about this?

Pugh: “It was really exciting. It’s been bubbling for a bit, the guys were working on it, and you’re just never sure if anything’s ever really going to happen. I was nervous because it’s got to be good if it’s got Pete’s name on it, but Pete’s easy to be with and work with. He’s a very professional guy. Obviously he’s a chaotic genius and we want to keep that bubbling, but he’s really easy to do it with.”

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In the first episode you keep asking the question, ‘ What is The Pete Doherty Show?’…

Pugh: “Yeah, I don’t know if we nailed that…”

Doherty:“We spent quite an intense period of time together. We had about two or three days together in Margate, a few days in London in the dug-out, then we went to The Albion Rooms with the whole team. It was a right laugh. We were bobbing around Margate, we went for a swim with the dogs, we organised a little last minute gig/stand up show.”

Pugh: “It was a good time: there was a heatwave, we watched the first World Cup game at The Albion Rooms. It was Pete’s first time back in Margate for a while.”

Doherty:“Yes, it coincided with a beautiful few days. We weren’t just sitting in a small studio in London. We had a blast.”

Josh, one assumes you’ve been a longtime fan of Pete’s work too?

Pugh: “Yes, I love music and I love The Libertines, Babyshambles and Pete’s [solo] stuff. He kept playing the songs at me, which I hadn’t anticipated happening. You can see it when we’re with some of the guests, especially when we had Carl on. You can imagine what that’s like, to have both of them.”

Pete Doherty and Josh Pugh present ‘The Pete Doherty Show’. Credit: Press

As a fan, is there anything you wanted to unpick about Pete?

Pugh: “The answer is no, really. He’s been interviewed loads and done the Louis Theroux stuff, so I just wanted people to enjoy him. To see him enjoying Margate, playing music, going to the football, I just wanted to show people what a fun guy he is. I didn’t want to get into anything that didn’t naturally come up. I was just trying to be in his company and I tried to be a fan, but with just enough professionalism to keep it moving.”

What did you make of his comedy chops?

Pugh: “Pete knows what’s funny. Sometimes he’ll just give you a little look and you’ll know to let him do a thing. He’s a born entertainer, he’s got all the right instincts.”

How did you get on with a nan?

Pugh: “Very well. She’s like all the best nans: she’s a talker, she gives you gifts, she makes you feel good. Nana is the researcher and researches the guests, which is not an easy job because they keep changing every five minutes.”

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