The Best Wedding Speeches | Wedding Tips
Wedding Speeches | Wedding Speech Examples
There are a few very distinct differences between British and American wedding speeches. First, the wedding speeches are called toasts in America and, in general, the Americans tend to follow the instructions” “be sincere, be brief and be seated.”
This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it is traditional in British weddings that the speeches are one of the main highlights of the event and are usually enjoyed, timed and cheered (at the appropriate moments, of course).
British wedding speeches are set out in a fairly stylised format with the first speaker being the father of the bride, the groom, the father of the groom (if appropriate but not mandatory) with the best man as the final speaker.
The more mediocre speeches I’ve heard over the past 15 years of shooting weddings have been from people who haven’t given any thought to what they are going to say. They think they will just wing it on the day. This formula doesn’t always work as think the beer will help it flow better, trust me I thought this when I got married and it made things a lot worse.
There is lots of good material available on delivering great wedding speeches, but do not just go to Google and copy and paste. You can guarantee that if you find a line on Google, that at least a few of the guests at your wedding will have heard the line before, and if they recognise one line they’ve heard before, it then puts doubt in peoples minds about whether any of your speech is authentic. Just be you.
You want it to be your speech. Telling your story is always best. Write it yourself. It won’t have the same emotion to it, if someone else writes it for you.
Here are a few tips to getting your wedding speeches just right:
Sweet Memories
Stories and memories shared should be positive and happy. Avoid mentioning anything that may have a sort of negative connotation to it. Did you grow up together? Is there a funny childhood, school or college moment that defines your relationship?
Remember The Crowd
Jokes you find amazingly funny may not be appropriate for the older folks in the crowd or children! Consider your words when writing funny, witty bits. Try a play on words if you’re trying to come up with a way to mention a saucy reference.
Find a Good Balance with Your Wedding Speech
When writing a great wedding speech, you want to find a balance between being polite, being humble, being appreciative of the occasion and your decision to join one another in holy matrimony. All of that, and then you can try being witty. The best way to tie all this together is to start sentimental, then add a romantic sentiment, throw a joke in between, be sentimental yet again, then add another joke in between. Good wedding speeches have a sincere balance of wit and sentiment. They tend to lace around one another like the laces of a shoe.
Give A Good Finish
While being witty and funny with a wedding speech, you need to round it all out with something about “all jokes aside”. You’ll want to thank everyone who contributed to the day for being amazing. Wrap up by simply raising your glass to toast the happy couple. Ask others to join you and give a final sentiment of toasting to your collective eternal happiness.
Practice Your Toast
Practice makes perfect. Run it past one of the bridal party members to make sure you’ve got it just right!
Don’t worry about your wedding speech
Don’t worry if you forget your wedding speech or muck it up, take a deep breath, smile, and say something like; “What I meant to say was”…. The guests are all there for the same reason, the bride and groom, and they don’t want you to fail and they’re not judging you! They are on your side. If you show them you’re human they will warm to you. You don’t have to be perfect, give yourself permission to be human! Remember, look down to read, and always look up to speak, but don’t read and speak at the same time, because that is one sure way to lose the connection with the audience. Also, don’t forget, you’re being timed 😉
Or you can just sing a song like Tom Fletcher from McFly. He managed to write a wedding speech/song that went viral around the world….are you up to the job? It’s truly amazing….
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