fbpx
0

Nail Your Bride Speech

Like a free bar stocked with Bollinger, a bride speech is guaranteed to get the guests excited.

It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to shout about how goddamn gorgeous your fella is without seeming a bit smug, as well as a chance to thank your friends and family for a lifetime of love.

The Speechy team are TV scriptwriters by trade and after writing speeches for hundreds of amazing brides around the world, we’re rated ‘excellent’ on Trustpilot. We know how to entertain a crowd and pack an emotional punch without being cheesy.

Here are our tips so you can write & deliver a bride’s speech worth remembering.

*Of course, if you want more than ‘advice’, check out our bride speech template, speech edit service or bespoke speech writing service. We’d love to craft you a speech that’s a little less ordinary.

More

Bride Speech - Surprise or Scheduled?

The first thing to think about is whether you want to surprise your groom or schedule your speech into the day.

The surprise speech is always a bit-bloody-cool but get a sense of the groom’s thank yous so that you don’t needlessly echo each other. Also, keep an eye on your duration. If there’s no check on the length of the groom speech, you need to keep yours relatively concise.

If the groom knows you’re giving a speech, you can divvy out the thank yous (and check that you aren’t repeating the classic stories). Sure, you’ll each want to thank both sets of parents but only one of you gets to tell the story where you got locked in that dodgy club.

You can also agree to contain both speeches to about six or seven minutes so you both get your share of air-time!

There are lots of good online sites to help you estimate your durations depending on wordcount.

Bride Speech Etiquette

A bride speech is the Burger King of speeches – you get to say what you want, how you want.

But (massive klaxon warning) make sure you’re not left with the ‘scraps of speeches’. Check out Confetti’s Guide to Etiquette to get a sense of who’s doing what so you don’t find yourself repeating the same thank yous as your husband and mumbling ‘again’ far too often. Stake your claim on the good stuff.

The role of your speech is to

  • make all the guests feel welcome
  • give your thanks to the important people
  • make your man feel properly loved

So who are ‘the important people’?

  • your parents
  • your in-laws
  • the best man & ushers (depending on the groom’s speech)
  • your maid of honour & bridesmaids
  • any children you and your groom already have

Of course, there may be others you want to mention but resist the urge to read out half the guest list. Nothing kills off a speech quicker than a tedious thank you list.

If you’re planning on giving thank you gifts to any of the wedding party, we recommend saying you’ll be ‘personally handing them out later’ so it doesn’t disrupt the flow of your speech and the guests aren’t tempted to start checking their WhatsApp messages.

5 Bride Speech Rules

Rule 1: Get Real

A heart-warming tribute to your groom should be the focus of your bride speech but remember every bride thinks her husband is gorgeous, kind and generally amaaaazing. The only way for this to sound genuine is – prove, don’t tell.

Resist too many adjectives and recount the anecdotes that show your bloke’s qualities in action.

Cut the cliches & concentrate on what makes your man unique. Avoid words like ‘soulmate’ or ‘gorgeous’, anything that’s overused.

Is he a library-lover, a technology fiend, a devoted foodie? Nailing his individual and quirky characteristics shows you ‘get him’ and his friends & family will love you for it.

Rule 2: Be Funny

All speeches should be funny. Yes, you want to be sweet about your groom and kind to your guests but make them laugh too.

No one’s expecting a stand-up routine but if you manage to get everyone giggling within the first 30 secs, then you’re on to a winner. Your guests will relax and you will too.

Of course, being funny isn’t about finding good jokes on the internet – it’s about making witty observations about your groom and your relationship.

Remember the adage ‘it’s funny because it’s true’. Ask yourself lots of questions. What have you done together, what do you regularly ‘debate’, what seems to be a regular theme in your relationship?

Avoid ‘Bride Jokes’ and read our How To Be Funny Blog for more inspo instead.

Rule 3: Tell A Story

Right, this is the crucial bit. Rather than just a collection of anecdotes and thank yous, a great speech should tell a story.

Yes, it’s made up of lots of different elements, but it needs to hook people in from the beginning, establish a theme and carry that through to an almighty climax.

One basic example might be a teacher who talks about the lessons her husband has taught her – the good, the bad and the ability to now shout a range of football chants. Another theme might be the bride’s interpretation of her marriage vows (e.g. man flu doesn’t count as ‘sickness’).

Creating a theme ensures the speech is easy to follow and entertaining. Find out #whatsyourstory

Rule 4: Less is More

If you and your groom are both giving speeches, you should both aim for about six or seven minutes. It doesn’t sound long, but it’s plenty of time to be both funny and sincere.

You might feel you have plenty to say but be strict with yourself. Remember a long thank you list turns a good speech bad.

Once you write your first draft, edit it down to half the length. We promise it will make it a hundred times stronger. No one ever watched a wedding speech and thought ‘if only it were longer’.

The edit process might mean cutting some of your favourite bits but you need to wipe out the waffle and kill those cliches!

Rule 5: Prepare to Deliver

A confident delivery is half the battle.

Check the acoustics of the venue & get a mic if necessary (so many speeches are ruined simply because the guests can’t hear them).

Try to memorise the speech but don’t be afraid to use notes on the day (your brain will be scrambled). Thick A4 paper is fine (but only print 3/4 of the way down the paper so you can maintain eye contact with your guests) or you can use a tablet (a mobile still looks overly casual).

Talk slower than feel natural (makes you sound more confident) & leave pauses for laughter (sometimes people need a moment to ‘get it’).

More Delivery Advice on our blog.

 

Classic Bride Trap

We cannot stress this strongly enough… A bride’s speech should not be more romantic or less humorous than the groom’s.

If you’re the naturally soppy sort, you might be hoping your bride’s speech is an opportunity to get all dewy-eyed and leave singletons weeping at the glory of the love you have found. It’s not.

OTT declarations of love can still be cringey even in a wedding context. If you can’t imagine reading your speech to your mates down the pub without them wanting to throw things at you, you’ve probably pitched it wrong.

Yes, we want to feel the love, but leave it for the audience to interpret it rather than spending the full seven minutes explicitly saying it. Tell the stories from your life together, rather than just looking for ways of telling your groom you love him. That bit is obvious!

Speech Do's

Make the thanks yous meaningful – Don’t just talk about what people have contributed to the wedding, thank them for what they’ve contributed to your life (even if it is just an appreciation on malt whiskeys). Keep each thank you less than 50 words.

Use quotes – Funny or poignant quotes can add something extra to your speech and it’s not plagiarism if you credit the author! Take inspo from our Quotes For Bride Blog.

Toast something meaningful – ideally something that will make your husband and guests smile – maybe ‘a lifetime of dancing on tables’. Consider a #TequilaToast

Practise your speech and film it on your phone – Watch it back and spot where your speech can be improved.

Listen to feedback – It’s always worth testing your speech on a mate but this means you have to listen to them. If someone doesn’t get a joke, don’t waste your time explaining it as you won’t be able to do that on the day.

Smile – Everyone wants you to do well so make sure you smile. It’s scientifically proven to be infectious and those scientists know stuff.

Speech Don'ts

Don’t thank the caterers or the venue – It’s unnecessary.

Don’t ‘explain’ why you’re giving a bride speech – Yes, you might always have the last word but a bride speech doesn’t need any justification for giving a speech.

Don’t show off – Yes, it’s your special day. But no, you’re not allowed to show off about it. Be conscious there are single girls out there. Be self-deprecating & be humble. Don’t do a Paltrow. Instead, channel Jennifer Aniston and be the rocking hot girl who everyone still likes.

Don’t resort to clichés – Yes you can thank your in-laws for ‘raising such a wonderful son’ but try to make it personal too. Thank your mother in law for the extra inch added to your waistline since you first sampled her Yorkshire Puddings.

Don’t talk over laughter – You’ve worked hard for those laughs – don’t rush them. Always wait until your guests have settled down before continuing with your speech.

Your Bride Speech - How We Can Help

Work with us and deliver a speech that will knock your groom’s socks off.

We offer a DELIGHT GUARANTEE on all our bespoke services so there’s no reason not to exploit us.

And, of course, in the world of Zoom, Whatsapp and Death Wish Coffee, we work with brides around the world.

Happy Customers

Navigating through the wedding industry often feels like you’re stuck on a conveyer belt....Speechy is the complete opposite. They treat you and your wedding like you’re the one and only. I couldn’t recommend them more. Power to brides that speak!!!
Best thing I did for my wedding was to say a speech. I felt so proud and confident AND EVERYONE LAUGHED !! what more can a bride ask for. It was soooo easy to do .... Speechy saved the day and I luved every minute of it so don’t hesitate! Go for it!
If you were like me and on the fence about getting a speechwriter for your big day, don't be - and don't look further than Speechy. They're first rate and will write a speech so good, you'll ask yourself why you had any doubts. Our joint speech was both touching and funny, We loved it.
I wanted to challenge this male-dominated wedding tradition and deliver a mic drop speech. I thought I could do it on my own but I am glad I got expert advice. Speechy team is amazing, creative and they helped me deliver exactly what I wanted. Highly recommended!
Heidi and her writers are just great. Taking the time to learn the nuances of your relationship and pulling out the elements of your story that you never knew would make the whole room laugh (or cry). It was an absolute please working with the Speechy team.
Heidi and the whole team at Speechy are an absolute gem! In addition to their talent and extensive experience in speech writing, Heidi had an impressive way of listening to me talk about mine and my partners personal anecdotes, before putting it in such a funny and beautiful way that it felt as though she’d known us for years.
Speechy helped me with my wedding speech and the experience from end-to-end was incredible. Right from the start Heidi was so warm and encouraging. We spoke about what I was trying to achieve and she selected Claire, a writer who was fantastic and shaped a speech that I was thrilled to deliver!
Speechy saved the wedding day! Thanks a ton! You tailored the wedding speech perfectly! The right portion of laughter and happy tears. I am soooooo happy you wrote it and not me. It saved me so much time and you did a much better job than I ever could. I couldn’t recommend Speechy highly enough.
Incredible. Whether you think you can’t write a speech or you think you can write a speech...theses guys will do it better and take away some stress and worry at time where there are quite enough potential sources!

Who We Are

Speechy is a team of speechwriters with a background scriptwriting for the BBC, Sky, C4 and working with the UK’s top TV talent.

We’re writers at the top of our game and Speechy has been referenced as a creative team to watch by The New York Times, Brides, Rock N Roll Bride, The Guardian, The Daily Mail, Metro, Grazia, Moss Bros & Huff Post.

We’re definitely on the ‘creative spectrum’ but we’re also conscientious & quality-driven and we hope you’d rather love working with us.

Find out more about us, or even better… just get in touch and find out how we can help you. Email hello@speechy.com,  call us now or you may prefer to WhatsApp us.

Meet the Team

A Global Service

Whatever your timezone, wherever you lay your hat, we can still work with you. Our team are based in the UK (GMT) but we work with clients around the world.

We understand the universal truths of love and humour and can tailor our work to your audience both culturally and linguistically.

We find there are enough hours in our day to ensure our communication with you is seamless and we create a great relationship with you no matter the distance.

Email hello@speechy.com,  call us now or you may prefer to WhatsApp us

REQUEST A CALL BACK
wedding speeches five star rated
See what our happy customers say about working with us
Trustpilot
Back to top

As featured in: