Edinburgh Fringe 2026
The Landlady
Brooke Flint
Genre: Comedy, Stand-Up, Storytelling
Venue: Olive Studio at Greenside @ George Street
Festival: Edinburgh Fringe
Low Down
A fish out of water finally gets her legs, only to discover the patriarchy is alive and well on dry land and… her sister is dead. Making her Edinburgh Fringe debut, Brooke uses insightful observational comedy and clever act-outs to explore faith, addiction, grief and the absurd. An ex-Mormon desperately seeking signs, meaning and a punchline. Funny. Heartfelt. Unapologetic.
Review
Brooke tells you straight away that The Landlady is a work in progress, and there’s an honesty to it that hooks you immediately. You trust her because she’s not pretending it’s finished.
This stand up comedy show centers around her story; growing up in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, her mother’s complicated love life, the men who moved through it like revolving doors, and at the centre of it all, her relationship with her sister and then her loss. It’s a life story told in fragments, and yes, the plot jumps around. But this isn’t careless. It feels intentional, a reflection of the chaotic upbringing she’s describing. You’re not lost by the leaps. You’re moving through her memory the way memory actually works: sideways, circular, returning to things.
What’s genuinely impressive is how Brooke handles the tonal shifts. She’ll have you laughing at the absurdity of it all, and then she lands a sombre moment with such care that the room doesn’t jolt or feel awkward. She knows exactly when to let the comedy breathe and when to let the vulnerability land. You feel the sister’s absence not because she tells you to, but because she shows it. The audience moves with her through these shifts; there’s real skill in reading a room like that.
There’s a clever parallel she draws between herself and a famous Disney character; I feel this is a younger Brooke hiding behind this story like a blanket. It’s the kind of observation that makes you sit up and pay attention. The transition between that story and her own life could land stronger, though she’s clearly aware of this. There are real circular moments that linger with you after you’ve left the room.
Brooke commands the stage. It’s a big space, and she fills it without ever needing anything but a mic. Her crowd work is genuinely good; she has a natural gift for connecting with the room, and she could absolutely lean into that even more. One woman, sixty minutes, and a lot of laughs.
This is a show worth seeing and a show that deserves and audience
