For his first solo gig on a London stage since his prison release, Pete Doherty showed up just a few minutes late to face an audience of 5,500. The venue? Oh, just Royal Albert Hall.

Actually, if you consider that the concert was supposed to occur on April 26, Doherty was about three months late for his largest solo performance to date. For this very special occasion, however, the junkie minstrel seemed to largely have his shit together. In particular, the critic at the Telegraph was impressed with this demonstration “of what a terrific entertainer Doherty can be,” that is, when the planets align just right:

The best of his older songs, such as Death on the Stairs and What Became of the Likely Lads, were irresistibly jaunty tales of the heady mischief he and fellow Libertine Carl Barat once got up to, with the added poignancy of having been written in the days when his hedonism was under control.

The night’s surprising high-point was Babyshambles’ debut single, F— Forever. Its stamp-along verses and weighty chorus meant it fared better than more nuanced moments, and the crowd seemed set free by the abandon with which Doherty attacked it.

Like much of Doherty’s best writing, its lyrics drip with droll depictions of the dodgy characters – whether real or imagined, he probably can’t remember – who passed through their hazy early days in the pubs and parties of London. This clever playfulness, which raised a smile mid-dance, is what Doherty did best, and did briefly. It is sadly missed.

Guardian UK gives a mostly positive review and details the pent-up energy that found its release only during Doherty’s encore:

Helping eager bodies to clamber next to him, he is soon swamped by more than 100 fans. Not used to such irreverent behaviour, security guards lose control of the stage invasion, which soon turns dangerous. One girl is pushed off the stage, while others fall under feet as they try to get closer to Doherty, who disappears out of a side door, his reputation for trouble intact but musicianship reaffirmed.

…reaffirmed for the evening, at the very least. Now, upon closer inspection of the below pictures, Doherty seems to be channeling Russell Brand. This is quite the disturbing development.