A SISTER act from East Hampshire is causing a stir in Edinburgh, having wowed comedy fans on both sides of the Atlantic.

The future looks bright for Nicola and Rosie Dempsey as their ‘Flo & Joan’ show is fast becoming a must-see at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

The comedic siblings are already well-known in North America as they honed their skills in the clubs of Chicago and Toronto. Their fanbase is growing by the day as their hilarious blend of witty lyrics, original music and improvised percussion has turned the duo into a headline act.

Their journey began in the unlikely surroundings of East Meon and Horndean as Nicola – a former Petersfield Youth Theatre member with a penchant for writing – moved to Chicago in 2014 to get comedy “lessons” at the Second City club before relocating to their Toronto base.

Her sister joined her in Ontario shortly afterwards and the pair, who named their act after their grandmother and her sister, were soon writing music.

“We always used to make up songs when we were young so we thought we would give it a go as adults,” said Rosie, who used to live off London Road in Horndean.

“We did a few shows in Toronto and it’s spiralled from there and we’ve been carried on the wind.”

Performances at festivals in Montreal and Philadelphia led to further acclaim while their Edinburgh debut has been equally successful, judging by the crowd numbers and reviews.

“Their songs are as carefully and intricately constructed as a Faberge egg,” wrote Kevin Wight of www.tvbomb.co.uk last Friday after catching their show in The Newsroom. “The downstairs bar was fairly crowded, suggesting that Flo & Jo may already be an open secret. One suspects they will get a lot of repeat custom as word spreads further.”

The pair have been joined by friends and family in Scotland as they will return to Canada once their residency at The Newsroom ends on August 21.

“We’re getting bigger crowds by the night,” said Rosie, who has not ruled out a British tour at some point.

“We’re not sure what the future holds at the moment. We’ve had some interest and we know there’s opportunities in England but we also enjoy being in Canada.”