Conjoined twin Abby Hensel got married in a 2021 wedding ceremony
Abby and her sister Brittany, one of only a few sets of dicephalus twins in history to survive infancy, rose to fame on their eponymous TLC show which chronicled their major life events, including their high school graduation and job hunting
An American teacher – who became famous on a reality TV series with her conjoined twin – got married in 2021 - 28 years after captivating the world with an appearance on Oprah.
According to public records obtained by TODAY, Abby Hensel, now 34, from Minnesota, tied the knot with Josh Bowling, 33, a nurse and army veteran in 2021.
Abby and her sister Brittany, one of only a few sets of dicephalus twins in history to survive infancy, rose to fame on their eponymous TLC show which chronicled their major life events, including their high school graduation and job hunting.
The pair share a single body, and from the waist down, all their organs, including the intestine, bladder and reproductive organs, are shared.
In a documentary filmed when the girls were teenagers, their mother said they were keen to have children of their own one day, explaining, "That is probably something that could work because those organs do work for them."
The Hensels' Facebook profile photo appears to be a wedding image, with the conjoined twins wearing a wedding dress, while Bowling, in a grey suit, stands before them holding their hand.
According to Today, the twins are now fifth grade teachers and reside in Minnesota, where they were born and raised.
Bowling's Facebook page also features happy images of him with the twins enjoying ice cream and traveling together. Additionally, his X profile, which is linked to his Facebook account, reads, "Christian, Father, Husband, Veteran, and occasional gamer."
Following their Oprah appearance, the Hensel's lives were documented on the TLC reality series Abby & Brittany, which followed them as they prepared to graduate from Minnesota's Bethel College and later traveled to Europe.
"People have been curious about us since we were born, for obvious reasons," the twins said in the first episode of the eight-part series, according to ABC. "But our parents never let us use that as an excuse. We were raised to believe we could do anything we wanted to do."
At birth, doctors presented the possibility of separating the twins. But their parents, Patty and Mike, decided against the surgery after being told there was little chance that both could survive the procedure.
"How could you pick between the two?" Mike said in a 2001 interview with TIME.
In that same interview, he also talked about the possibility of marriage one day for Abby and Brittany. At the time, the magazine reported that they were already asking their father about finding husbands someday.
Knowing that other conjoined twins have married, he thought, why not? "They're good-looking girls. They're witty. They've got everything going for them, except they're together," Mike said.