WEDDING SPEECHES, THE WHY’S, WHAT’S AND WHEN’S

Why a toast? Well bizarrely toasting dates back to the middle-ages and is thought to be the way untrustworthy friends were tested to make sure that they weren’t going to poison you! They would each take a little bit of the same wine, clink and toast “to your health” (ironically) before drinking. Over time the clinking and toasting has remained a more happy tradition!

Traditionally the wedding speeches (and toasts) take place after dinner, but couples mix it up nowadays and the best time for your speeches will depend on the schedule for your big day. We tend to find that after the wedding ceremony, drinks reception and photos guests don’t want to wait for all of the speeches to tuck into dinner! So having the majority of speeches once people are fed and relaxed and over a coffee usually works best, but if you have a nervous speech giver who would rather get it out of the way before dinner, then really don’t stress about breaking the tradition. Happy and relaxed wedding guests always make for the best day! We’ll work with you to figure it out in the run up.

So, as a start, here’s the traditional order of the speeches and what each one generally covers:

First up! Father of the Bride.

So dads first job is usually to welcome all of the guests and thank them for coming, he should lead a toast to absent friends and family. He should then go on to welcome the groom into the family before telling some heartfelt stories about the bride and complimenting her on how gorgeous she looks on the day. Finishing with a few reasons why the bride and groom make a fabulous couple and then asking everyone to toast the newlyweds.

Onto the Groom

Traditionally the groom starts by responding to dads toast to the newlyweds and he also thanks the guests for coming and for all of their gifts, before spending a little time complimenting his new bride. This should be followed with some thank you’s to the members of the bridal party including giving out a few gifts and saying a few words about the key members. He should make sure that he thanks both sets of parents and toast the brides parents if they are hosting. His speech should end with compliments and a toast to the bridesmaids.

Next. The Best Man. Uh Oh.

The best man, usually the Groom's bosom buddy and this is his opportunity to make all of your guests smile by sharing some funny incidents and weird habits of the groom. His closeness to his mate should also mean that he can share some valuable advice and rules of the game that the couple should take into their married life. He should also follow the groom in thanking the bridesmaids, read out messages from absent friends, compliment the bride and finish with a fabulous toast to the newlywed couple!

It’s not unusual for the Bride or a Bridesmaid to also want to say a few words nowadays. We’d usually slip the bride in alongside the groom (or just after) and your Bridesmaid just ahead of the Best Man.

Speeches are always a fantastic end to dinner! Make sure that you let us know how many you are expecting and roughly how long you think they will be, that way we can make sure that dinner and coffee is served in plenty of time before your evening guests start to arrive for the party!

Cheers!

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