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Best Man Speech Template
We have created a basic best man speech template. It outlines what you need to say and when. The actual words are up to you. You could take inspiration from classic best man speech jokes and tried and tested best man speech opening lines.
Thank the previous speakers
This will usually be the groom and the father of the bride (thank the most recent speaker first). If the bride has spoken as well, include her in your thanks.
Thank the bride and groom
for the honour of being best man at their wedding. Say a few kind words about the bridesmaids at this point. As the traditional head of the wedding party, you represent all its members. It doesn’t do any harm to mention that the only one upstaging the bridesmaids is the bride.
Icebreaker
If you are very nervous about giving your best man speech, having an icebreaker ready can really help calm the nerves. There are lots of classic best man speech opening lines which can be used as they are or adapted to your speech. Getting a laugh right away in your best man speech will fill you with confidence for delivering the rest of it.
A few words about the bride and groom
Include the bride in your speech. It shows respect to the commitment they have made to each other. This part of the speech is where you start to personalise it. Talk about what they are like together or how they met. What you say will depend on how well you know both the bride and groom. Using humour (be it cheeky or punch line style) in this part of your speech depends on whether you are good friends with the bride and think you can get away with it. Your mission is to entertain, amuse and enlighten, but not to offend!
Anecdotes and funny stories
Tell an amusing story about the groom. Remember your audience. Your choice of story and the way you tell it has to appeal to the bride and groom’s families, including elderly relatives. Make sure you’ve read the Best Man Speech Dos and Don’ts before you write this part of your speech. If you grew up together you will have a wealth of material in childhood stories. If you met the groom as an adult, contact his family and friends for funny stories that will embarrass him (but not too much). They will be pleased to help you. When you are telling a funny story be animated and show your emotions. This will get the most laughs. If you don’t show any emotion, neither will your audience.
The Groom
Tell the audience what the groom is like. You are the best man for a reason so give your audience an insight on the groom that you know. Don’t use in-jokes as many of your audience won’t know him as well as you do and your whole audience must understand your jokes (even if they don’t all find them hilarious). A mixture of sincerity and good humoured ribbing is a winning formula for this part of your speech.
The Bride
It’s nice to say a few words about the bride at this point. It is traditional to mention how the bride looks beautiful or stunning but don’t limit your praise to her physical appearance. If you know the bride well it will be easier. Use humour and risqué material here at your own discretion. You’ll know what will be appreciated and what won’t. The golden rule for writing wedding speeches is if in doubt, leave it out! Even if you don’t know her well you can talk about the effect she has had on the groom and how she has made him happy.
The Final Toast
The best man speech traditionally concludes the formal part of the proceedings and marks the start of the informal part. You have come to the end of your speech! Almost. Making a final toast to the bride and groom is a good way of solidly concluding your speech. Your audience will know you’ve finished speaking and getting the audience to join you in a resounding ‘Cheers!’ is a great way to liven up the audience for the upcoming revelry! You can find some sample best man toasts here.
Introduce the next event.
The newly weds might be leaving to go on their honeymoon or a wedding disco may be about to start. Let the audience know what is happening next. The only exception to this is if there is a Toastmaster, in which case it is best to speak to him/her beforehand.