Bette Midler gushes about daughter

Bette Midler's daughter is her toughest critic.

The 68-year-old star is a mother to daughter Sophie, who turns 28 later this month, with her husband of almost 30 years, artist Martin von Haselberg. Sophie is set to follow in her mother's acting footsteps with a role in next year's Untitled Woody Allen project and Bette couldn't be more proud of her offspring.

"My daughter is my best friend. She thinks I am hysterical. She's my toughest critic, yet she's so kind. She's kind to both my husband and me, which makes us think, 'Oh my God! She likes us!'" Bette smiled to People magazine. "Lots of kids move out of town and go as far as they can. Not my girl."

Bette has a varied career under her belt, with much-loved films including Hocus Pocus and 2004's The Stepford Wives to her name. She also boasts 14 studio albums and a host of theatre work, so her spouse often stepped in to look after their daughter when Bette's schedule was busy.

"Raising my daughter is my greatest accomplishment, but I didn't do it by myself. My husband is probably the greatest father who ever lived. He's fantastic. He picked up the slack when I was on the road," Bette gushed. "He taught her to cook. We both taught her responsibility and to have patience, and not to want instant gratification. And she is all of the things that you wish you could be: Responsible. Hardworking. Fascinated by life and full of wonder. I love it."

Her music is still going strong and her 14th record, It's the Girls!, is out this month. The album is a collection representing the music of some of the greatest girl groups of the past but Bette admits she did struggle with one song.

"I tried [Destiny's Child's] Bills, Bills, Bills, but the arrangement was too crazy for me," she commented to New York Daily News.

"I said, 'This is nuts. I can't do it.' But the song itself is really kind of hilarious and I love the way Beyoncé sings really low on it. It's amusing and sour and snarky. I'm a fan."