Ex-member blasts Babyshambles 'circus'

Ex-Babyshambles guitarist Patrick Walden has described his former band as a "circus".

Walden has claimed that he and frontman Pete Doherty were "crack addicts" and that the band was surrounded by "snakes".

"Pete and I were heroin and crack addicts. It got pretty dark. We weren't making any music.

"They went on tour without me. That pissed me off. And the band had become a circus. There were so many snakes - we'd be in the studio and there'd be people taking pictures of Kate Moss doing coke."

Talking about his departure from the band, Walden said: "I went to see Pete in his flat and said I was going to pop out. Pete asked if I was really coming back, and I said, 'Yeah.' But I didn't go back."

The guitarist was due to reunite with the band at their MEN Arena gig last November but has revealed that the presence of drugs on the tour prevented him from appearing.

He added: "I had gone to Windsor to rehearse the night before. There were drugs about and it was supposed to be a drug-free tour. I wasn't happy."

However, Walden, who is currently recording with new band Big Dave, has said that he wouldn't rule out a reunion with his old bandmates.

"I'd love to work with Pete again. But I want to establish myself with Big Dave first," he said.