The son of a pair of ballroom dance instructors, Doherty began his music business career as a part-time enterprise as a DJ in dancehalls and pubs while still employed full-time as an electrical apprentice at
Marconi Ltd in
Chelmsford. A frequent visitor to Soho's
Marquee Club and Flamingo Club he began working as a DJ at Basildon & Ilford Mecca ballrooms. At 19 years old he then turned professional and moved to Copenhagen and Stockholm to earn a full-time living as a club DJ. In the early 1970s, Doherty returned to
London and secured a position in the post room at
Island Records before becoming a road manager for music impresario
Jo Lustig, working on tours for artists including
Jethro Tull,
The Chieftains and Richard &
Linda Thompson,
Nico &
Fairport Convention. In the 1979 Doherty moved to
Joe Boyd's
Hannibal Records independent label as a press officer. == Live Aid ==