- Thank you all for coming and sharing this special day with Nicola
and John.
- I'd like to take this opportunity to thank you all for coming,
I know that some of you have further to come than others but you
are all welcome guests on this happy day/ night.
- Ladies and gentlemen, I'm delighted to see so many of you here
today to celebrate the marriage of my daughter, Nicola to John.
- Nicola and John have worked very hard to pay for today and it's
been worth it. This is a lovely meal/reception and everything
looks perfect. I'm proud of the pair of you.
- Weddings are not cheap things but my little girl/daughter deserves
the best and, as you can see, she's got it. This would not have
been possible without the generous help of John's parents, George
and Amy.
- This wedding has taken a lot of time and patience, as well as
indecision [a small joke about the arrangement e.g. the colour
scheme vs. an outrageous on such as a Mr blobby theme of pink
with yellow spots] and I'm really delighted that it's turned out
so well. I'd like to thank the florists/minister/bridesmaids in
particular for the amount of trouble they have gone to. Everything/the
church/the hall/the hotel/the bouquet looks/look wonderful.
- "I have always known that Nicola is a beautiful woman,
but |I have never seen her look quite so beautiful or so radiant
as she does today and I'm so proud of her."
- "Nicola has had many roles in life… (eg. daughter,
fiancé, student, air hostess etc.) but never has she looked
more beautiful than as a bride."
- "When Nicola told me that she was going to get married,
I was worried that she wouldn't be my little girl anymore but,
seeing her as a beautiful bride, I realise that, no matter how
old she is, she will always be my little girl and I love her."
- "This elegant/beautiful/radiant/lovely bride is a far cry
from the Nicola I remember so well who was always in trouble for
being messy/muddy/late/a toy-boy/scruffy but, no matter what she
looks like, I love her and am very proud to be her father/step-father/uncle/mother/etc."
If you are not the bride's father, there are many ways to convey how
proud you are to take on this role:
- "I am not Nicola's father but he would have been so proud
of her today, as I am."
- "Nicola has been my comfort and joy and I am honoured that
she chose me to give this speech."
- "As Nicola's brother, I am supposed to be nasty to her
and pull her hair to remind her that she is younger than me. Trouble
is, she looks too gorgeous today and I am proud to be giving her
away on behalf of our family. Please look after her!"
- "There are not many men good enough for Nicola but John
is. When she turned up with a /scruffy/spotty/runny-nosed/well-groomed/lanky/large/tall/pony-tailed
man, I was suspicious/delighted/dismayed/curious/welcoming
but I never hoped/really hoped that they would marry. And/but
they have and I am really pleased for them. John is a good/delightful/fun/great/lovely
man and they make a lovely couple."
- "John is one of those rare breed of men - he really is
as good/sincere/wonderful/perfect/much of a creep as he
seems and I am delighted to welcome him into our/my family."
- "Nicola always claimed that she would never get married/find
the right man/love anyone/be happy but she was wrong. In John
she has found the perfect partner and I am delighted he has become
a part of my/our family."
- "What can I say about John? He is a great/perfect/lovely/wonderful/good
man and no one else would be as perfect for my daughter/Nicola.
I'm delighted that he's decided to become part of the family [at
long last]."
This is a chance to make a few gentle jokes but nothing crude or offensive.
You might even want to quote something or recite a poem and you will
find some ideas in our Love
Poems and Readings section.
- "Marriage, as I know all too well, is about compromise
and, to keep things running smoothly, it's good to talk. However,
as Henry Rowland said, 'before marriage, a man will lie awake
thinking about something you said; after marriage, he'll fall
asleep before you finish saying it'."
- "The best way for a peaceful marriage is simple - lie.
If she asks you if you've done whatever you've forgotten, say
that you have and then do it. If he catches you doing something
you shouldn't, say it was as a surprise for him. Men are stupid,
they'll believe anything if they want a peaceful life or at least
pretend to!"
- "Nicola always said that she'd never find that special
someone but I'm delighted to see that she has. I just want to
read something I read as it seems so suitable and expresses exactly
what I mean. It's called Somewhere There Waiteth and is by Arnold
Edwin:
"Somewhere there waiteth in this world of ours
For one lone soul,
Each choosing each through all the weary hours,
And meeting strangely at one sudden goal."
- "You may think that this wedding has cost a lot but, as
Goethe said, 'The sum which two married people owe to one another
defies calculation. It is an infinite debt, which can only be
discharged through all eternity.' I wonder if their bank manager
would believe that?"
- "Sitting here today, you may think that everything will
run smoothly but you'll be wrong. It took a politician to sum
up what I man (Herbert if anyone cares) who said, 'the concept
of two people living together for 25 years without having a cross
word suggests a lack of spirit only to be admired in sheep.' As
I found out, the disagreements can be the best part of marriage.
As long as you enjoy making up afterwards."
- "'To marry is to halve your rights and double your duties.'
(German philosopher) but if that were all there is to it then
none of us would get married in the first place and I'm pleased
that Nicola and John have taken the plunge, otherwise none of
us would be here enjoying this fine Champagne/wine/beer/tap water."
This is it; you can sit down - but not yet. Finish with a flourish
and then relax, the rest of the day/evening/night is yours to enjoy!
- "Ladies and gentlemen, please be upstanding, I give you
. . . the bride and groom."
- "Ladies and gentlemen, please charge your glasses, I give
you . . . the bride and groom."
- "Honoured guests, please join me in the traditional toast,
I give you . . . the bride and groom."
- "Ladies and gentlemen, please be upstanding and raise your
glasses, I give you . . . the bride and groom."
"For me this is an important moment, it is not the subject of
jokes but the time when I resuscitate my bank account and hand over
Sarah's spending habits to another man to balance.
The good thing about wedding is that you can show everyone how generous
you are and I wanted to give you an itemised bill of how much those
flowers cost (thanks to Vikki for arranging them so beautifully) but
Angela told me that it was not the done thing… as she was slipping
on her £150 hat!
Seriously, I have really looked forward to this day for years as it
means that Sarah will be happy. She makes a stunning bride and John
is a good man, I wish them every happiness for the future. If they
are any bit as happy as my own good wife and I, then they will be
very happy indeed.
Marriage is an important commitment, so much so that you need a mortgage
to pay for it! But it needs more than that. It needs patience and
compromise and I should know, I've been patiently compromising for
years!
Bob's just looked at his watch which is the signal that he needs a
drink so, ladies and gentlemen, please be upstanding, I give you .
. . the bride and groom."
When Sarah was a little girl, she used to lift her dress over her
head and pretend that it was a veil. Fortunately, she's acquired a
bit more finesse since then and is the most beautiful bride I have
seen since I married her mother more than 30 years ago. I am so proud
that my little girl has grown into such a beautiful and accomplished
woman.
This wedding has been a huge family affair and today we become one
big family. I'd like to thank John's parents, on behalf of the bride
and groom, for their generous assistance towards the wedding. Without
their generosity, we would not all be sitting down to such a lovely
dinner in such a beautiful hotel and I'm grateful for their help in
making this day so special for my youngest daughter.
What can I say about John? Quite simply, Sarah couldn't have chosen
better. He's everything I would ever have looked for in a son-in-law
and I'm delighted that he's chosen to join our family.
I don't want to bore you with how happy I am today so I'll finish
up with the traditional toast said from the heart: ladies and gentleman,
I give you . . . the bride and groom.
Weddings can be a very difficult time if a close relative or friend
has passed away. Here is an example of one way to honour them within
your speech, but check our Gone
But Not Forgotten article for more ideas.
"Standing here in front of all of you, I feel incredibly old.
To me, it was only yesterday that Sarah was born and I never thought
that I'd ever be as happy as that but I was wrong. Seeing my daughter
look as beautiful as she does today makes me happier than I ever thought
possible. I am so proud of everything that she become and I only regret
that her mother, Angela, could not be here to see it/ died before
she could see it. But this is not a day for regrets. This is a day
for happiness and looking forward.
I am so pleased that Sarah and John found each other. I never thought
that anyone would be good enough for my little girl but I am delighted
to be proved wrong and John is a lovely man who makes my daughter
happy. What more could I ask of anyone?
I don't want to take up anymore of your time with memories of Sarah
growing up and almost getting expelled for trying to burn her school
down so she could get a day off - she never was very practical! Instead,
I am going to ask you all to be upstanding and join me in a toast.
Ladies and gentlemen, please raise your glasses; I give you . . .
the bride and groom."
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