ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:
It seems like every week there is a new main character, someone or something the internet is obsessed with. And on any given week it's a toss-up whether I know who it is or not. Luckily, I have seen our producer Mia Venkat's average daily screen time, and it is alarming. So I know that the internet's main character is inevitably on her radar, whoever or whatever it may be. Mia, thank you so much for putting your phone down, stopping the scrolling and taking a moment to come into the studio.
MIA VENKAT, BYLINE: Oh, my God (laughter).
SHAPIRO: Too harsh?
VENKAT: (Laughter) You're welcome, Ari.
SHAPIRO: OK, so who's this week's main character?
VENKAT: OK, Ari, this week's main character is actually two main characters. It's the Twinnies.
SHAPIRO: Oh, do you mean the Australians who talk at the same time?
VENKAT: Yes (laughter). Yes.
SHAPIRO: OK, I admit I scrolled past their video. I might have watched it once. Why are they the internet's main character?
VENKAT: So it's Bridgette and Paula Powers, and they went viral this week 'cause they were interviewed by 7NEWS Australia since they witnessed a carjacking.
SHAPIRO: I feel like we need to paint a picture. They're, like, women of a certain age, blonde...
VENKAT: Yeah.
SHAPIRO: ...May or may not be natural blondes.
VENKAT: (Laughter) They're in their 40s. They have this, like, very curly hair. They also wear identical outfits all the time.
SHAPIRO: All the time.
VENKAT: And they were also wearing identical outfits in this news interview that they did. And I'll say, like, there's nothing funny about the actual content of the interview - they're talking about a carjacking - but people just couldn't get enough of what they sounded like.
SHAPIRO: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
BRIDGETTE PETERS AND PAULA PETERS: And he goes, I'll shoot you. She goes, hang on, I'm here to help. And mum distracting him to make him look the other way. And he looked the other way. And mum ran into the bush behind the fence, fence.
SHAPIRO: (Laughter).
VENKAT: Right, OK, so, like, I feel bad laughing because...
SHAPIRO: Right.
VENKAT: ...It's a very serious subject. But also, I watched that interview, like, 12 times. I couldn't tell you a single detail from this carjacking 'cause they're - it's so distracting just watching them.
SHAPIRO: It's giving "The Shining." What did the internet do with this viral interview?
VENKAT: Yeah, so, obviously, people are obsessed with the fact that these twins talk in sync. A bunch of creators recreated videos, kind of, like, cloning themselves...
SHAPIRO: (Laughter).
VENKAT: ...As the twins and, like, talking. This creator, Madison Humphrey, did one. The caption was, those twins trying to convince everyone that they have to speak at the same time.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
MADISON HUMPHREY: (As Bridgette and Paula Peters) And we were calling for help, help, for our mum, mum. And we were scared, scared.
VENKAT: A lot of the comments and a lot of people are like, I don't know if I really believe that they...
SHAPIRO: Right.
VENKAT: ...Talk in unison. And, like, you can tell in some of the videos, one person will basically say an entire sentence, and then the other twin...
SHAPIRO: And then the other jumps...
VENKAT: ...Will just kind of, like, land it.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
B PETERS AND P PETERS: All I was thinking about when we were running, I hope he doesn't fire, fire. Yeah, and we were so blessed, blessed.
SHAPIRO: Who actually are these two women, besides twins who talk at the same time and dress alike?
VENKAT: Right. So they actually run a, like, wildlife sanctuary in Australia. It's called the Twinnies Pelican and Seabird Rescue. This is, like, their life's mission. They're very passionate about it. And this isn't even their first brush with fame. They've been interviewed before about the fact that they are twins that speak in unison, that kind of...
SHAPIRO: I can imagine them being on the Australian version of, like, "Wendy Williams."
VENKAT: Well, they were even on - they were on "Good Morning Britain" with, like, Piers Morgan...
SHAPIRO: Oh.
VENKAT: ...Eight years ago. And on that show, they got asked if they prepare their answers ahead of time.
(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "GOOD MORNING BRITAIN")
B PETERS AND P PETERS: We don't know how it happens. Like, some people go, do you rehearse a conversation? And we said, no, how can you rehearse a conversation? It's a bit stupid.
VENKAT: I personally love whimsy, and I want to believe that they always talk at the same time, and it's not preplanned.
SHAPIRO: OK, Mia.
VENKAT: Yes.
SHAPIRO: We're not twins. We're not even siblings.
VENKAT: (Laughter).
SHAPIRO: We're not even in the same room right now. But do you think you and I could do this?
VENKAT: I think we could. What if we just try the goodbyes, the typical NPR goodbye?
SHAPIRO: OK.
VENKAT: But I'm going to kind of take the lead on what you would say, and let's see if you can guess what I'll say.
SHAPIRO: Yeah, sure.
VENKAT: So...
SHAPIRO: Mia...
VENKAT: Mia Venkat...
SHAPIRO: ...Venkat...
VENKAT: ...That was...
SHAPIRO: ...That was...
VENKAT: ...Perfect.
SHAPIRO: ...Perfect.
VENKAT: Best interview...
SHAPIRO: Best interview...
VENKAT: ...Of my life.
SHAPIRO: ...Of my life.
(LAUGHTER)
VENKAT: Thanks for joining us.
SHAPIRO: Thanks for joining us.
VENKAT: Ari?
SHAPIRO: Ari? Oh, it's my turn now.
(LAUGHTER)
SHAPIRO: You are the greatest...
VENKAT: You are the greatest...
SHAPIRO: ...Interviewer...
VENKAT: ...Interviewer (laughter)...
SHAPIRO: ...In the...
VENKAT: ...In the world.
SHAPIRO: ...World.
VENKAT: You're welcome.
SHAPIRO: You're welcome.
(LAUGHTER)
SHAPIRO: And inevitably, we have to go out on music by NSYNC.
VENKAT: I was going to say "Birds Of A Feather"...
SHAPIRO: What? (Laughter) Come on.
VENKAT: ...'Cause they love birds.
SHAPIRO: Because you were born in the '90s.
VENKAT: (Laughter).
(SOUNDBITE OF NSYNC SONG, "BYE BYE BYE") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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