They’re twins, born through artificial insemination, and now discovering where their genes come from.

People born in the UK with a donated egg or sperm who turned 18 after October 1 will be able to trace the donor’s identity thanks to a change in law. Matthew and Phoebe Betts They have known since they were 2 years old that they were conceived through sperm donation.

The twin brothers, now 16, have spent their lives wondering who that person could be. When they turn 18 next year, They may request to know your name and last addressIf you want to know where they come from.

By now they know their biological father’s body composition, his eye and hair color and some of his hobbies. Photography, swimming and guitar. They also know that he has a master’s degree in business administration.

To date, twins have been able to ask the fertility regulator in the UK for some basic details about their donor. Her parents used sperm from a British clinic to conceive To their surprise, the donor was from Colombia.

His South American tradition The twins from Mansfield, Nottinghamshire (about 230 km north of London) are a new discovery. Welcomed.

Since then, Phoebe, a dance enthusiast, Studied the dances and recipes of Colombia. He also thinks that explains why he has curly hair. “Very Cold A part of us is from another country,” he revealed.

Matthew and Phoebe, like me, are part of the donor-conceived people. I interviewed them for a new BBC documentary, My sperm donor and me (My sperm donor and I).

More than 70,000 donor-conceived babies have been born in the UK since 1991. In 2005, a law came into effect that made it mandatory for anyone who donates sperm, eggs or embryos to remain anonymous from this date.

The first group of teenagers conceived by affected donors will turn 18 on October 1. Meanwhile, They can find “identifying information”. Donor, his name, last known address, place and date of birth.

The parents of Matthew and Phoebe, Sarah and Shawn apparently waited until the law changed in 2005. Their children can access this information in time to start fertility treatment.

“We felt it wouldn’t be fair to any of the children and we would have to turn down the opportunity,” Sarah explained. The twins were brought up knowing the facts of how they were conceived. “It’s always something natural to talk about.”Phoebe said.

Matthew and Phoebe too They hope to find and reunite with some of their 10 half-brothers or sisters.Known to have been born from a sperm donor between 2006 and 2008. “We know we have half-siblings because a record is kept,” says Shawn.

By the end of 2024, around 766 young people will be old enough to apply to the UK Fertility Regulation for identifiable information about their donors. By 2030, this number will rise to nearly 11,500.

This is surprising news for donor-conceived people like me. However, they are also bitter because those born before 2005 cannot benefit from this change in law. If we want to find our donors – I understand that not all of them will – our only hope Entering the information we take from a home DNA kit online And fingers crossed to see if our donors have done the same.

We can also ask the regulatory authority Commission on Human Fertilization and Embryology (HFEA), if the donor voluntarily requests to have his anonymity removed.

I was pregnant at 17 and living in South Wales with my dad, Derek, when he sat me down one night and told me that he and my mum had used a sperm donor to have me. That night I went to bed crying, not knowing what to think or what to do. Not anymore. We didn’t talk about it again at my house until eight years later, when we both decided to broach the subject again. We even discussed it in a TV documentary.

But it all fell apart when my father, who was everything in my world, died of lung cancer at the age of 68.

I was devastated, but his death in 2022 took away even a little fear. I always felt guilty for wanting to know more about I saw the other missing half of my family. Now I don’t feel that way, I know my father would be very proud of the journey I took.

One of the best experiences I’ve ever had My sperm donor and me Finally found a sister through donation. We found a match through a DNA testing website We hit it off immediately.

Rhea and I met in a pub in my home town of Cardiff. It was like we had known each other forever. She is 28 years old, she is an engineer and she has a dog. We have birthdays two weeks apart We both grew up 20 minutes apart in South Wales. It certainly filled in a missing piece of my puzzle.

Matthew and Phoebe hope that learning more about their donor will do the same for them. It’s something his parents also support. “We have two great kids,” Shawn said. “Our lives have changed as a result of that person’s kindness, So it would be nice to shake his hand and say ‘thank you’.”