The former lighting director said in an interview: “I don’t do drugs, haven’t for more than 20 years.”
A source insisted drugs were “part and parcel” of the TV industry and added: “Tom was no different.”
Markle Snr turned to drugs to cope with the pressures of life in Hollywood and to give daughter Meghan a better life, it is claimed.
The 74-year-old admitted he got high while the future duchess was young, but insisted he has not touched drugs since.
He was asked in an interview about claims he is an alcoholic and replied: “I hardly drink at all, just a little wine with my dinner, nothing much.”
But he added: “I don’t do drugs, haven’t for more than 20 years.”
It was also claimed Thomas, who has not spoken to 36-year-old Meghan for more than two months, cannot get hold of his daughter as she has changed her phone number.
The retired Hollywood lighting director he is said to be worried he may never be allowed to see any grandchildren she may have with Prince Harry.
A family source said of Thomas’ drugs admission: “When Tom worked in television, drugs were part and parcel of the industry. They were rife.
“Tom was no different. He worked every hour God sent so he could give Meghan the life he wanted for her.
“Sixteen-hour days were normal. Tom used to work well into the night.
“The spare time he had off he’d sleep for a little while but then spend every minute he could with Meghan before going back to work.
“After a while, such long hours take their toll and Tom would use drugs that helped him work for longer. Coffee just didn’t cut it.”
Thomas did not specify which drugs he used in his interview with the Mail on Sunday. But his daughter Samantha said last night marijuana was popular at the time he worked in Hollywood.
She added: “My father is upstanding and doesn’t really drink and he doesn’t do recreational drugs.
“But in the 60s, 70s and 80s for most people I know in America it was a cultural thing to smoke marijuana.
“Most people did. I’m sure people like The Beatles smoked pot when they were on tour. It was a sign of the times. I don’t think my father is the only one who can ever have been condemned for having done that. He was never regularly doing it, he never smelt of it and I’ve never seen my father smoke it.
“But certainly my father has never taken cocaine or any other drugs like that. He didn’t have the mentality for it.
“He was a really successful lighting director which required very sharp visuals and attention to detail.
“If he had been a drug addict he wouldn’t have been successful for 40 years in a highly technical job, no way.”
Meghan was unaware of her dad’s drugs past. A friend told how Thomas, who is recovering from heart surgery which stopped him going to his daughter’s royal wedding in May, now “feels completely cut off” from her.
According to reports in the US, the duchess now “lives in fear” her dad would leak their conversations if she were to speak to him.
An insider said: “Meghan is so upset over Thomas. She’s upset for a couple of reasons. She doesn’t even know how to communicate with her dad without knowing he won’t exploit her.”
But despite his hurt and anger amid all the stories surrounding the Markle family, Thomas said in his interview: “Meghan is everything to me. I love her and I always will.”
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