Bette Midler: Duke and Duchess are gorgeous

Bette Midler was petrified during the Royal Variety Performance because she's "no good with heights".

The 69-year-old singer was one of many to take part in the show last month, and she was delighted to get the opportunity to meet Britain's Duke and Duchess of Cambridge while in the UK. Unfortunately, she didn't enjoy the introduction as much as she should have.

"I loved meeting William and Kate, who were very generous, very gentle. They're such beautiful young people. It was great fun, although it was a long day. To perform my song, I had to be lowered on to the stage from the ceiling, which frightened me because I'm no good with heights," she told British magazine Hello!

That is just one of the things which causes Bette fear. There are many other phobias to add to the list, with the news one of her top dislikes.

"I find it so hard to overcome, how bad it makes me feel, that I've taken a sort of hiatus from it. People with guns scare me. And something bad happening to someone I love. But that's a given," she explained.

It's not just fears that Bette worries about, she also spends a lot of time thinking about things she could have done differently. Although she knows it's not that healthy, the star doesn't expect that to change now.

"I regret everything. As my friend is fond of saying, 'Why live in the present when you can regret the past and fear the future?' I'm currently reading Ruby Wax's book Sane New World and I laugh on every page. She wanted to figure out a way of avoiding regret and depression. I haven't yet got to the point where she's laying it all out for me but I'm certainly enjoying the journey," she said.