22-04-2025
Does twin telepathy exist? Australian sisters go viral after in-sync interview
Identical twins from Australia have gone viral after they were filmed speaking in unison during an interview about a carjacking.
Dressed in matching Easter outfits, sisters Bridgette and Paula Powers recounted how their mother raced to help when a stolen car crashed on Steve Irwin Way on the Sunshine Coast, only to be confronted by the gun-wielding car thief.
Despite the drama of the story, it was the way the twins delivered the tale to 7NEWS Australia that caught the attention of viewers across the world.
The pair, who run a bird rescue centre, told the story in sync, starting and finishing each other's sentences and appearing to predict what the other would say next.
Speaking in unison, Bridgette and Paula said: "He was coming back down towards us and he goes 'run, he's got a gun' and our hearts started to pound."
They even mimicked each other's head and hand movements, at one point brushing their faces with their hand to indicate the blood on the thief's face.
Does twin telepathy exist?
According to Tania Johnson from the Institute of Child Psychology, there is no scientific evidence that twin telepathy exists.
She told ITV News: "What we are likely seeing here is a deep familiarity....a powerful connection that has been shaped by years of shared experiences, emotional closeness and shared genetics. Identical twins grow up deeply attuned to one another.
"They often will think alike, speak alike, and act alike simply because they know one another so well - what we are seeing here is the result of an incredibly strong bond."
She added: "This is the result of what we call mirroring - a natural process that occurs when people who are closely connected start to unconsciously reflect each other.
"Over time, their brains have developed an instinctive understanding of one another. So while it looks like they are reading each other's minds, we are really just seeing a deep attunement to one another."
Regarding the difference between identical and non-identical twins, Ms Johnson said: "Identical twins share 100% of their DNA, while fraternal twins share about 50%, just like any siblings.
"This genetic closeness can lead to more similar personalities, temperaments, and interests, which can deepen their bond.
"In addition to this, identical twins look the same and may be treated really similarly by everyone around them and so their emotional and social worlds often becomes intertwined.
"This is really about being so deeply interconnected that you end up experiencing and seeing the world almost as if you were one."
Following the viral interview, Bridgette and Paula told The Project: "We have tried to talk separately, but we're not ourselves, it's not us.
"We tell people if they can't stand listening to us, simply switch off the TV."
