The Duchess of Sussex's estranged father shares his side of the story in a new documentary about their strained relationship.
Thomas Markle is speaking out like never before.
Meghan Markle's estranged father shared his side of what happened between him and his daughter in a Channel 5 documentary titled Thomas Markle: My Story that aired on Wednesday. The eye-opening special features Thomas getting candid about his fallout with Meghan, admitting he lied during previous interviews and more revelations.
"I want everyone to know that I am not all the trashy things that are being said about me," Thomas begins, as he explains why he agreed to give the exclusive interview. "I want Harry and Meghan to see that this is not fair. To them, I don't exist."
Recapping his early life and relationship with Meghan from the very beginning, Thomas shows off his personal never-before-seen photos and videos from when she was younger as he reminisces about his time with her. However, the doc notes that some of Thomas' comments contradict what he or Meghan have previously said in other interviews or reported stories.
Thomas then talks about being followed by the paparazzi, who wanted to find out more about him and his family, after news that Harry and Meghan are dating.
"My clothing were critiqued, the way I looked was critiqued, the things I bought was critiqued," he says, adding that it all took a toll on him, especially after the news of their engagement broke. "Suddenly, I became an alcoholic."
Meghan's relationship with her father has been complicated. Thomas was set to walk her down the aisle at her wedding to Harry, but later backed out after having a heart attack. He also made headlines when prior to the wedding, he staged a handful of paparazzi photo shoots of himself to "change his image." While he has previously said that he received no money for the photos, in the doc, Thomas admits to getting 30 percent of the sales of the photos.
Those photos, however, were the beginning of his and Meghan's fallout. Admitting that he first lied to Meghan and Harry about staging the pics, he later apologized. After his heart surgery, he claims that Harry and Meghan called him and had a less-than-pleasant conversation when he told them that he couldn't go to the wedding.
"Harry said to me, 'If you had listened to me, this would not have happened to you,'" he claims. "If I stayed in the house, and never spoken to anyone this wouldn't have happened. To me, that was a very rude thing to say, especially when he knew I was lying in a hospital bed. At that point I said to him, 'It's too bad I didn't die because you guys could pretend that you're sad,' and then I hung up on them. I was done. That may have caused everything, I don't know. But I've not heard from them or spoken to them since."
The doc, however, suggests that "other accounts of this exchange suggest the conversation took place by text message, not over the phone as Thomas says."
Amidst his relationship with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Thomas does admit to lying about the conversations that he had with Meghan and Harry during his June 2018 Good Morning Britain interview after the royal wedding.
"Actually on the Piers [Morgan] show, I lied," he says, revealing that the couple never actually called him. "I made their image appear better."
While he admits that he knows that Meghan and Harry, along with the royal family, would be mad at him for doing interviews, he firmly states in the doc that he will continue to do them for money.
"I'm going to defend myself," he blatantly says. "And I'm going to be paid for it. I'm not going to refuse to get paid for it. I'll do future things and be paid for it, I think. I don’t care. At this point, they owe me. The royals owe me. Harry owes me. Meghan owes me. What I have been through, I should be rewarded for."
"My daughter told me that when I reach my senior years, she would take care of me," he adds. "I'm in my senior years now. I'm 75 years old, so it's time to look after Daddy."
He also refutes Meghan's claims that she got herself through college with scholarships and worked her way up, claiming that he paid for all her university tuition, apartments and supported her acting dream.
"I helped her with every step of her life up to that point. I was part of her dream," he notes. "So for her to suddenly forget me, take me out of the picture and forget my name, suddenly do this ghosting thing, is very hurtful to me."
Thomas also shares his thoughts on not being told about Meghan being pregnant and giving birth. He also claims that because of their estrangement he hasn't been able to see his grandchild. While Thomas says he would love to get the chance to meet Archie, he doesn't know what the future holds for his relationship with Meghan.
"I miss her. I miss the way she was. I don't know who she is now, that's the problem," he says.
Two weeks ago, meanwhile, Harry and Meghan announced their plan to step back as senior members of the royal family, to become financially independent, and to split their time between North America and the U.K. On Saturday, Queen Elizabeth II announced the final decision from Buckingham Palace regarding their futures. In a statement, the Queen revealed that the couple will lose their HRH titles and will repay the money they used to refurbish their Frogmore Cottage home in Windsor, England.
The Palace also noted that the couple will no longer be working members of the royal family, though they would not comment on security measures surrounding the couple's future.
For more on Meghan and Harry's latest news, see below.
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