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The Speech

Tuesday 1 September 2022 - Uncategorized - Tags: speech

My fiance is best man at his brothers wedding this weekend, which means he is going to get a good trial run for our wedding! I was in touch with public speaking coach Brenda Harte of Harte to Heart, who has given some great tips for delivering a speech-which I thought I should pass on for either your bridal speech or for your H2B's speech.

For the groom speech:

If the bride is not giving a speech .. then he'll start with "My wife and I ...  If he has been introduced by an MC .. then he will thank him.Your fianc� will thank just about everyone!    He does not want to sound like he's giving an Oscar winning speech! To avoid this - he should try to lighten his thanks with a spot of humour.He'll thank his new father-in-law for his kind words and both your parents for the fine job they did in bringing you  up. The guests should be thanked for their generous gifts and indeed for coming (especially if they have travelled far)

He will ...

(iv)  Talk about when you both first met .. who made the first move?   Who proposed to whom?

(v)   Add in any humourous stories about your life together so far.   Devote a large part of the speech to you, his new wife  (especially if you're not going to speak yourself).    He might tell you how he feels about you and what you mean to him. 

(vi)   .. now turn to the Best Man and thank him for accepting the role (and also if he is the MC) and maybe tell the guests that you are dreading what he is going to say!?

(vii)  He should offer a toast to you .. .. a very touching moment!

(viii)  Finally, he should thank the bridesmaids on behalf of you both and propose a toast to them.

It is really heartwarming to hear "My wife and I "  .. or "on behalf of Mrs. (married name) and I"   .. All lovely and romantic!

For the best man speech:

He should have the points he wants to make written on cue cards - say about 6/7.  However, since the Wedding is so close, he will most likely need more cue cards.  Hopefully no more than ten.

Avoid any remarks/jokes that might offend anyone (Granny or Granddad)?Furthermore, by all means play for laughs - but spare the Groom's feelings! 

Remember the Best Man is speaking on behalf of the rest of the wedding assistants - Bridesmaids, Ushers,               Page Boy/s, Flower Girl/s etc.

He should cover the following points:

• Thank the MC - unless he himself is MC.
• Thank the Groom (his brother) for his kind words and for the honour of being the Best Man.  
•    "     the wedding assistants (Bridesmaids, Page Boy/s etc.)
•  Traditionally, the wedding couple give gifts to the wedding assistants.   On behalf of them and yourself, thankl the wedding couple for these gifts ... maybe make a joke that these gifts will not act as a bribe and stop you from making fun of the groom.
• Tell a couple of funny stories about his brother, the Groom.  The fact that they grew up together should spark off lots of memories. The Best Man could even run a brief chronological curriculum vitae on Mark.
• If the Best Man has anything humourous about the Bride .. include this.
• Read out any emails etc.
• Give your brother and his new wife your best wishes for their future together.
• Conclude by announcing the cutting of the cake and ask the guests to raise their glasses in a toast to the new couple  Mr. & Mrs.  (give names) ?