(*Of course, if you’re looking for more than ‘advice’, check out all the different ways the Speechy team can help you write & deliver a great speech. Or check out our new AI-powered team member, SpeechyAI.)
A word of warning before we begin… Using quotes is a great way of adding gravitas to your speech but don’t let it make you lazy.
Use the quotes as an addition to what you want to say, rather than a substitute for your own words. Write your speech first, then see if a quote or two can make it better.
1 – Make the quotes meaningful
Think about the songs, the films, the books that mean something to you both. Do any of these lend themselves to a great quote? Guaranteed, the bride will love you more for it.
2 – Don’t overload your speech with quotes
Two maximum as a general rule. One at the top and one towards the end.
3 – Quote recognisable names (or at least provide some context)
It’s always good to quote people that you’ve actually have heard of (or at least respect after you’ve looked them up on Wikipedia). You’ll find there’s loads of great quotes by people you’ve never heard of, but do you really want to qualify them by saying they were written by a ‘relationship consultant’?
4 – Don’t just use quotes for the sentimental bit
Quotes can also add humour where it’s needed.
5 – Add a back ref
Put the quote into a personal context, or make it humorous with a suitable ‘ad lib’.
6 – Get expert advice
Check out our Groom Speech Advice for the full low down on how to package your quotes up in a great speech.
“I am nothing special; just a common man with common thoughts, and I’ve led a common life. There are no monuments dedicated to me and my name will soon be forgotten. But in one respect I have succeeded as gloriously as anyone who’s ever lived: I’ve loved another with all my heart and soul; and to me, this has always been enough.”
Nicolas Sparks, The Notebook.
Yeah, you’re no Ryan Gosling, but you can still pull off this quote. It’s suitably self-deprecating and rather endearing.
Everyone in the room will love it. Especially the bridesmaids.
“I knew when I met you an adventure was going to happen.”
A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh.
That moment you meet your bride for the first time. Summed up by a honey-munching bear.
Check out more lovely quotes from the bear.
”You are the finest, loveliest, tenderest, and most beautiful person I have ever known—and even that is an understatement.”
F. Scott Fitzgerald
A serious compliment. Nailed.
“You look like the rest of my life.”
Beau Taplin
Hands up. We’d never heard of this dude until recently but boy, is he worth knowing if you want a romantic quote…
“The one thing I know for sure is that feelings are rarely mutual, so when they are, drop everything, forget belongings and expectations, forget the games, the two days between texts, the hard to gets because this is it, this is what the entire world is after and you’ve stumbled upon it by chance, by accident––so take a deep breath, take a step forward, now run, collide like planets in the system of a dying sun, embrace each other with both arms and let all the rules, the opinions and common sense crash down around you. Because this is love kid, and it’s all yours. Believe me, you’re in for one hell of a ride, after all––this is the one thing I know for sure.”
OR
“It is a frightening thought, that in one fraction of a moment you can fall in the kind of love that takes a lifetime to get over.” ‘’When we love, we always strive to become better than we are. When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.’’
Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist
We have to admit this is pretty darn sweet. And potentially true.
“It was a million tiny little things that, when you added them all up, they meant we were supposed to be together.”
Sleepless in Seattle
Ok so it’s from a 90’s chick-flick but the sentiment works. We approve.
“Once in awhile, right in the middle of an ordinary life, love gives us a fairy tale.”
Unknown Author
So it’s probably ‘by the internet’ but the idea is a good one. Add a comedy back ref comparing your bride to a Disney princess and how her style, er, differs somewhat.
”My most brilliant achievement was my ability to be able to persuade my wife to marry me.”
Winston Churchill
Helps if you’ve done something impressive with your life, but not essential
“When I saw you I fell in love, and you smiled because you knew.” Arrigo Boito
Arrigo Boito
Yep, it’s fair to say you can’t get away with much these days.
“Who, being loved, is poor?”
Oscar Wilde
Suggested back ref – something related to the cost of a wedding.
“I love being married. It’s so great to find that one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life.”
Rita Rudner
It’s a classic but it works.
“Before you marry a person, you should first make them use a computer with slow internet service to see who they really are.” Will Ferrell
Will Ferrell
Yep.
”People are weird. When we find someone with weirdness that is compatible with ours, we team up and call it love.”
Dr. Seuss
Surely this quote applies to every single couple getting hitched!?
“Never go to bed on an argument. Stay up and fight.”
Phyllis Diller
Still love this classic quote. And we follow her advice every night.
”When you find people who not only tolerate your quirks but celebrate them and say ‘me too!’ be sure to cherish them. These people are your tribe.’‘
AJ Downey (Author)
Everyone likes to be part of a tribe. And a wedding is always better if everyone’s part of one.
‘Friendship is the hardest thing in the world to explain. It’s not something you learn in school. But if you haven’t learned the meaning of friendship, you haven’t learned anything.’
Muhammad Ali
Quoting this dude is always going to add a bit of cool to your speech.
“There is nothing like puking with somebody to make you into old friends.” Sylvia Plath
Sylvia Plath
Even literary titans understand the powerful bonding experience of a stag do.
”You can always tell a real friend: when you’ve made a fool of yourself he doesn’t feel you’ve done a permanent job.”
Laurence J. Peter
Thank god this is true.
‘It’s the friends you can call up at 4am that matter.’
Marlene Dietrich
You know the ones…
“Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: ‘What! You too? I thought I was the only one.”
C.S. Lewis
If you’re brave enough, give examples to make this quote genuinely funny.
The Speechy team are TV-trained scriptwriters/comedians by trade & we’ve helped 1,000s of speakers around the world deliver their dream speech.
Our advice has been quoted everywhere from The New York Times to Grazia and from Forbes to The Observer. Our founder has also featured on the BBC Sounds’ Best Men podcast with Jason Manford and written ‘The Modern Couple’s Guide to Wedding Speeches’, published by Little, Brown.
