- substr: documentation ( source)
- var_dump: documentation ( source)
- strpos: documentation ( source)
- trim: documentation ( source)
- strtotime: documentation ( source)
<?php
$input = '[Tue Jun 18 22:25:32 BST 2013] NeoThermic likes B*witched - C"est La Vie';
$bracketpos = strpos($input, '[');
$endbracketpos = strpos($input, ']');
$datestamp = substr($input, $bracketpos + 1, $endbracketpos - $bracketpos - 1);
$intdate = strtotime($datestamp);
$likespos = strpos($input, 'likes');
$nickname = trim(substr($input, $endbracketpos + 1 , $likespos - $endbracketpos - 1));
var_dump($nickname);