A pair of British twins who were separated at birth later married, completely unaware that they were brother and sister, the House of Lords has heard.

The unnamed pair were adopted by different families and neither was told they had a twin. However, when they later met as adults they fell in love and then got married. The marriage was annulled in a private hearing by a High Court judge after the truth became known.

The exact details of the case have been kept a secret, but the case was heard recently in the High Court’s Family Division, the Evening Standard newspaper reported on Friday.

Professor Lord Alton, who discovered the case, told the paper that the situation underlined the need for children to have the right to know the identities of their natural parents.