Extraordinary story of conjoined twins. . . just don't ask about boyfriends

They were never expected to survive beyond a few days.

But conjoined twins Abigail and Brittany Hensel have not only proved doctors wrong, they have astonished them with their development into darling children, typical teenagers and, lately, beautiful young adults.

Now the 22-year-olds, who share one body fused at the torso, will be starring in their own reality TV show chronicling their graduation from Bethel University in Minnesota, their post-grad job search and their travels through Europe with friends.

Extraordinary bond: Conjoined twins Abigail and Brittany Hensel have been given their own reality TV show charting their graduation and travels through Europe

Astonishing development: The 22-year-olds, who share one body, graduated from Bethel University in Minnesota, a story that will form part of the show

The girls first captivated the world in 1996 when they appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show and the cover of Life Magazine.

Since then they have lived a quiet, normal life with their family in Minnesota, keeping away from the media spotlight until they agreed to appear on a documentary for TLC when they turned 16.

The broadcaster has now given them their own show called 'Abby and Brittany' which will premiere on August 28.

When the Hensel twins were born on March 7, 1990, in Minnesota in the United States, doctors warned their parents Patty, a registered nurse, and Mike, a carpenter and landscaper, that they were unlikely to survive the night.
But that prediction was to prove wildy wrong.

Feat of teamwork: The girls passed their driving test on their 16th birthday, with each twin using one arm to control the steering wheel

Remarkable: The girls have two spines, two hearts, two oesophagi, two stomachs, three kidneys, two gall bladders, four lungs, one liver, one ribcage, a shared circulatory system and partially shared nervous systems

When growing up, they, like many twins, had very different personalities and tastes.
Abigail, the feisty, stubborn one, liked orange juice for breakfast, while Brittany, the joker of the family, would only touch milk.

They also stunned doctors with their astonishing co-ordination while playing the piano, with Abigail taking the right-hand parts and Brittany the left.

They enjoyed sports such as bowling, volleyball, cycling, softball and swimming.
And on their 16th birthday they passed their driving test, a mind-boggling feat of teamwork with each twin using one arm to control the steering wheel. 

Speaking at the time, their mother Patty, a registered nurse, conceded that could have been a problem.

'I don't know what would happen if they got pulled over for speeding. Would they each get a ticket or just Abby because it's her foot on the accelerator?'

Much-loved: The girls attended a private church school and are popular with their friends, who treat them no differently from anyone else

One in a trillion: The Hensels are believed to be one of only a few sets of dicephalus twins in history to survive infancy