LEADING fertility expert ­Professor Robert Winston says the birth is "extraordinary".

"This is unbelievably rare and one of the first cases I've heard of in the UK," Lord ­Winston says. "The fact it's ­happened before in the same family – albeit generations ago – is significant.

"The genetic differences between black and white ­people are much slighter than we think. I can only think there's been a mild mutation.

"It may also be that the part of Africa the parents are from – Congo – is inherent to a certain genetic instability. There's been very little research.

"Events like this just go to show how ­similar we all are."