Utah woman ‘accidentally’ married her third cousin

A rising TikTok star has stunned fans by revealing that she and her husband are related by blood – and she says she only learned the secret while she was carrying his baby.

A rising TikTok star has stunned fans by revealing that she and her husband are related by blood – and she says she only learned the secret while she was carrying his baby.

Marcella Hill – who has raked in almost 300,000 followers on the social media site with her health advice videos – shared the shocking story in a viral clip posted early last week.

“So I’ve never told anyone publicly that I accidentally married my cousin,” the Utah mum admitted in the footage, as reported by the New York Post.

Hill went on to explain that she was pregnant when she made the discovery – uncovering the truth while looking at her family tree to find an ancestor to name their baby after.

“I was like, ‘Oh look, grandpa’s name, grandma’s name, great-grandma’s name, great-great-grandma’s name,” she recalled.

“My husband was next to me on his own family search and was like, ‘Oh that’s funny – we have the same grandma and grandpa’s names.”

Utah TikTok star Marcella Hill shocked her legion of fans with her big reveal — and has racked up nearly 1 million views. Picture: TikTok

The couple then compared their family trees and realised that Hill’s grandpa and her husband’s grandmother were actually first cousins.

“So he calls his grandma and I call my grandpa and we ask them if they know each other … Sure enough – ‘Sure!’” Hill recalled the relatives answered.

The confirmation meant that Hill and her hubby are third cousins – and the revelation left them reeling.

In America, cousin marriage laws vary from one state to another – though the only time it is illegal is often if the couple are first cousins.

Over time the couple has come to accept the fact and are still married to one another. Hill even claims there are benefits to being related to her spouse.

Hill has jokingly claimed that there are benefits to being related to her spouse. Picture: TikTok

“We have won a prize for being-the-closest-related-in-a-neighbourhood activity,” she joked.

“And when I go to my family reunion, he gets to go to his too – at the same time.”

Hill shared a second video saying that she and her husband were married in a small ceremony at a local courthouse so there was never any prior occasion for them to make the familial connection.

Fans of the TikTok star were stunned by the story, with many saying she should have kept it to herself.

“I think you should have just not told anyone,” one viewer wrote, while a second commented: “I definitely would never have publicly admitted this.”

However, others claimed the family secret was “no big deal”, with one nonchalantly declaring, “We’re all cousins if you go back far enough.”

This article originally appeared on the New York Post and was reproduced with permission