OUTRAGE AS GEORGE SMOKES DOPE ON TV

But his behaviour on Lord Bragg's South Bank Show infuriated drugs charities because research is increasingly linking heavy cannabis use with mental health problems.

The 43-year-old star, who has been given two police cautions for possessing cannabis after he was found slumped in his car, is shown smoking a joint backstage at a concert in Madrid.

"This is the only drug I've ever thought worth taking," he says in the programme to be screened on October 31, adding: "It is very good for creative people."

But he qualified his comments by then declaring: "It can be a terrible, terrible drug. You've got to be in the right position to take it.

"You've got to have achieved most of your ambitions because it chills you out to such a degree that you could lose your ambitions."

Richard Colwill, of mental health charity Sane, said: "It is the kind of comment we would not want from a pop star.

"People with mental health issues often self-diagnose and treat themselves with drugs such as cannabis.

"It can give a short-term lift from depression, but all it does is mask underlying problems and can make life more difficult. There is growing evidence that when cannabis is smoked by young people it can lead to psychosis when their brain is developing."

William Butler, of Addaction, said: "We are concerned about the message this can send.

"Cannabis is illegal because it can be harmful. We need stronger and clearer messages about cannabis harm."