Sarah Roberts: The ultimate power move? Eating your twin in the womb
Power
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Power 〰️
Image: Rebecca Need-Menear (Sarah, Ted & Katie)
The Edinburgh Fringe is back for 2026, and with it, our annual feature series! This year, we’re taking on POWER: Who’s got it? Where is it? Where should it be? How do you get it? Our comedians are the only ones with the answers.
By Sarah Roberts
Did you know an eighth of all pregnancies start out as twins? Then one of the embryos gets absorbed by the dominant twin. This happened to me, Sarah Roberts. Well it happened to my twin. I am the absorber, I am the supreme life force, I am legend. Otherwise I’d be writing this as an embryo. Which would be pretty incredible tbh.
The thing is, most people don’t even know they ate their twin. Their parents never think to tell them. And they live their life in ignorant twinless bliss, not knowing they were the Hannibal Lecter of their mother’s womb. But what I’ve discovered recently is that there is an epidemic of knowing twin eaters on the comedy circuit (Roger O’Sullivan, Katie Norris, and Ted Hill to name and shame them). And even in the entertainment industry in general.
One famous twin scoffer is Taylor Swift. Nothing has ever made more sense to me than the concept of Taylor Swift eating her twin in the womb. That woman is ruthlessly competitive. And people are constantly trying to decipher who her songs are about, but if you really listen, it’s clear they’re all about her twin she ate in the womb; “Don’t Blame Me”, “I Did Something Bad”, “Guilty as Sin?”, “Baby Now We’ve Got Bad Blood”. Wake up sheeple. She ate her twin and now she’s monetising it, just like all the nasty comedians I spoke to (including me).
So, what all this means is that at least one of the eight people reading this has a bit of sibling inside them that they ate. I’m going to try and help you figure out if it’s you by cross-examining the aforementioned and notorious embryonic cannibals on the comedy circuit. If you relate to a single thing they say it’s likely you ate your twin in the womb and are destined to become either a multi-award winning popstar, or multi-award losing comedian. Hey, you might even have a bit of triplet inside you, who’s to judge? Definitely not me.
In a move that is historically very out of character, I’m going to allow Roger, Katie and Ted to speak (and live beyond gestation). Here’s what these power hungry (and hungry hungry) freaks told me:
Me: When did you first become aware of the twin you ate in the womb?
Roger O’Sullivan: I used to go out with a doctor and they noticed I had something called chimerism. They said the most common cause was eating your twin in the womb. I asked my mom, my personal womb expert, and she corroborated it.
Katie Norris: I was a teenager when I first discovered I ate my twin, I suspect it was a male because I’ve gone on to become a fully fledged succubus in my adult life (a demon who drains the life force from men as they sleep).
Ted Hill: I’ve always known I ate my twin in the womb. I don’t remember being told it because I sort of just always knew. I named him Francis, after my middle name. My parents didn’t name him but I did, it reminds me that I am a natural born winner.
Me: Do you think the knowledge of eating your twin in the womb has had any effect on your personality?
Roger: Hard to say, but multiple people have responded "that makes so much sense" when I mention it, which doesn't feel like a compliment. Sometimes I go through periods of time where I act very out of character or just don't feel myself. I will find myself thinking "oh my God was that my twin's spirit taking over?", but then rationalize it is much more likely to be the myriad mental illnesses I'm diagnosed with.
Ted: I think knowing that I ate my twin in the womb gives me confidence in knowing I am an alpha. I dominated that guy. I chowed down on him.
Has eating your twin in the womb informed your comedy in any way?
Roger: It gave me one good opening joke, so I would say it's been pretty important. Without that I'd be asking "are you well?" a lot more. I think unless you're a medieval doctor or semi-literate water diviner you should keep the phrase "are you well" out of your vocabulary.
Ted: In my last show I tried to bring my twin from the womb back to life so he and I could do a double act together. This routine eventually became a part of my set in the semi finals of Britain’s Got Talent, but the production staff made me change it to a mannequin of Simon Cowell because they said that eating a twin in the womb technically counts as a miscarriage so I couldn’t joke about it on tv. The real miscarriage was the miscarriage of justice done against my excellent joke.
If you found any of this relatable AT ALL then you might also be a natural born winner *cough* cannibal. Please sign up to your first open mic comedy night immediately.
Sarah Roberts: Scary Movie 7 is running at Monkey Barrel (MB2) from Aug 3-30th (except 17th), 22:00. Tickets here
Roger O’Sullivan: Divil May Cry is running at Monkey Barrel (MB2) from Aug 6-30th (except 18th), 17:45. Tickets here
Katie Norris: Mother Succubus is running at Pleasance Courtyard (Above) from Aug 5-30th (except 19th), 21.25. Tickets here
Ted Hill: PowerPoindexter is running at Assembly George Square Studios (Studio 5) from August 5-30th (except 18th), 18:00. Tickets here
Read more about Edinburgh Fringe 2026:
