Bette Midler's Caitlyn Jenner Joke Causes Uproar On Social Media

'I seem to have misread the temper of the times.'

Bette Midler has issued an apology, after causing offence with a joke about Caitlyn Jenner.

The veteran entertainer caused uproar among her followers on social media over the weekend, when she made a comment that Caitlyn may choose to go “back to Bruce” - the name she was previously known by before coming out as trans - now that her reality show, ‘I Am Cait’, has been axed.

Bette Midler
Bette Midler
Charles Sykes/AP

She wrote: “Now that ‘I Am Cait’ has been cancelled, will she go back to being Bruce? Will Kris take him back? Do I smell a re-wedding?!”

Caitlyn Jenner
Caitlyn Jenner
Kevin Mazur via Getty Images

Understandably, the joke was not very well received, and it didn’t take long before Bette started taking some heat for her insensitive comment, particularly given that so much of her fanbase identifies as LGBT.

Bette has now deleted her initial tweet, and issued an apology, addressed specifically at The Human Rights Campaign, an LGBT advocacy group that both she and Caitlyn have worked with in the past.

In an all-caps post, Bette wrote: “SORRY LAST TWEET OFFENDED. AN IDLE MUSING. I SEEM TO HAVE MISREAD THE TEMPER OF THE TIMES.”

However, others have since insisted that Bette shouldn’t have had to apologise, claiming that her joke didn’t necessarily mean she is transphobic.

This isn’t the first time that Bette’s name has been in a headline alongside the Kardashian/Jenner family.

Earlier this year, she was among those who faced a backlash for criticising Kim Kardashian, when the reality star uploaded a naked selfie on her social media account.

Kim hit back at Bette directly when the ‘Beaches’ actress tweeted she’d have to “swallow the camera” if she wanted to show off a part of her that no one’s seen before, insisting: I really didn’t want to bring up how you sent me a gift a while back trying to be a fake friend then come at me.”

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Samira Wiley ('Orange Is The New Black' actress)
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"I was just taught that love is the most powerful thing."
Adore Delano (Drag performer/singer)
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"My voice is not only for singing, I speak about body image issues, HIV rights, and many other topics that should be addressed when you have a platform like mine."
Mary Lambert (singer/songwriter)
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"Hearing women of all ages sing 'She Keeps Me Warm' at the top of their lungs - they don’t give a shit about what pronoun it is.

"They get that it’s about love, so I think that’s really given me perspective. I think people can deal with it, and they get it."
Todrick Hall (YouTube star/singer)
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"When you’re a person that’s trying to be a public figure and you’re black and you’re gay and for some people it’s a little too much for them to handle...

"I think there are a lot of people who are afraid to be who they are and if I have to sacrifice a little bit of fame and a little bit of success because I’m being 100 percent truthful with who I am, hopefully that will create a paved way for someone else."
Ines Rau (model)
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"It's all about what's in your heart. Gender and sexuality do not make you who you are. Your heart and actions do!"
Riley Carter Millington ('EastEnders' actor)
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"I want to help make a difference. [Being trans] is a part of me and I want hopefully to make other people feel like they can come out, like they can feel that they’ve got support."
Angel Haze (rapper)
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"Sexuality is like having a favorite colour. It doesn’t rule you, you know? And I should be able to do whatever and whoever I want at any given time."
Joe Lycett (stand-up comedian)
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"Gender is fluid and I think it’s absolutely fascinating, so I talk about that a little bit in my show. I think it’s important some people do publicly go, 'Hey, I’m not straight and I’m not gay. I’m somewhere in the middle and that’s OK.'"
Ruby Tandoh (foodie/'Bake Off' finalist)
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"To all the bros who hate social media, who pit it against 'real life' - I never would've had the courage to be me without Twitter's queer queens."
Troye Sivan (YouTube star/pop sensation)
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'[Being gay] been a non-issue for me. But the same thing that’s been a blessing in my life can lead someone to suicide. Every time I hear about an LGBTQ kid committing suicide, it’s just so much frustration. I just think about lost potential because a parent wasn’t accepting or a friend wasn’t, and it ended an LGBTQ kid’s life.

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