A bride and groom speech template
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A bride and groom speech has five parts: a welcome, thanks to the people who made the day happen, a few words about each other, a word for anyone who could not be there, and a toast. Given together, it takes the place of the traditional groom’s speech, after the first speaker and before the best man or maid of honour. The template below has a version for two speakers and one for either of you alone. Aim for about 10 minutes.
Where it fits in the day: the guide to the order of wedding speeches covers who speaks when, and the timeline builder shows what the speeches do to the rest of the day.
Does the bride do a speech?
Traditionally, no. The customary speakers at a UK wedding are the father of the bride, the groom and the best man. That has changed. Debrett’s notes that wedding roles “are now all interchangeable and can apply to either gender”. The speeches are also separate from the legal part of the day. That part is the ceremony, and for it GOV.UK says “You must exchange vows if you’re getting married.”
So a bride can speak alone, the couple can speak together, or the groom can speak as before. For two brides or two grooms, the template works the same way.
What to include, in order
Debrett’s sets out what the groom’s speech traditionally covers: thanking the person who spoke first, then “the guests, the bride’s parents (if they’re hosting the wedding), and his own parents and best man”, a few words about his new spouse, and a closing toast. A speech from the couple, or from the bride, follows the same order:
- Thank the person who spoke before you.
- Welcome the guests, and thank them for coming, especially anyone who travelled.
- Thank whoever hosted or paid for the day, and both families.
- Thank the wedding party, by name.
- Remember anyone who could not be there.
- Say something about each other.
- Hand over to the next speaker, or close with a toast.
A bride and groom speech template for two speakers
Swap every bracket for your own words, and delete any line that does not fit your day. Decide in advance who says which line; alternating by section is easier to rehearse than alternating by sentence.
[Speaker 1]: Thank you, [name of the first speaker], for those words. [One line on something they said.]
[Speaker 2]: And thank you all for being here. [If guests travelled: Some of you have come from [place], and it means a great deal that you made the trip.]
[Speaker 1]: We want to thank [hosts, or the people who paid for the day] for [what they did]. [One specific thing they did that you will remember.]
[Speaker 2]: To [the other family], thank you for [what they did, or for welcoming you]. We are lucky to have both families in the room.
[Speaker 1]: Thank you to [names of the wedding party] for [what they did today]. [One line for each, or one line for them all.]
[Speaker 2]: We are thinking of [name or names] today, who [could not be here / we wish were here]. [One line about them.]
[Speaker 1]: [Speaker 2’s name], [one thing you noticed about them early on]. [One thing you know about them now.]
[Speaker 2]: [Speaker 1’s name], [the same, the other way round].
[Both]: Please raise your glasses to [the wedding party / absent friends / everyone who made today happen]. [Toast.]
[Speaker 1]: And now, [name of the next speaker].
A version for one speaker
For a speech from the bride, the groom or either partner alone, keep the same order and change “we” to “I” where the line is personal. Thanks can stay in the plural, given on behalf of you both.
Thank you, [name of the first speaker]. [One line on something they said.]
On behalf of [partner’s name] and me, thank you all for coming. [If guests travelled: a line for them.]
We want to thank [hosts] for [what they did], and [the other family] for [what they did, or for welcoming you].
Thank you to [names of the wedding party] for [what they did today].
We are thinking of [name or names], who [could not be here / we wish were here].
[Partner’s name], [one thing you noticed about them early on]. [One thing you know about them now.] [What today means to you, in one sentence.]
Please raise your glasses to [toast]. And now, [name of the next speaker].
Turning the template into wedding speeches from the bride, or from both of you
The brackets are the whole of the work. A sample bride and groom speech written for someone else will not fit your families, so the template asks for specifics instead: one thing each person did, one moment, one sentence each about the other. Specific lines are easier to deliver because you already know them.
Using bride groom speech examples well
If you read other couples’ speeches for ideas, borrow the structure, not the stories. Check that every name in the thanks is spelled and pronounced the way its owner says it, and that no one in the wedding party is missed.
Timing a bride’s speech
This site works on 10 minutes a speech, the same figure the timeline builder uses. Read the finished speech aloud with a timer, at the pace you will use on the day, and cut lines until it fits. A joint speech has two people taking turns, so rehearse it together at least once to get the hand-overs right.