The groom’s wedding speech is one of the pivotal moments of a wedding day. I’m not going to write a template for your groom speech, but I am willing to offer some friendly advice about writing your groom speech. My advice is a culmination of filming a lot of speeches, and writing and performing the groom speech at my own wedding!

The groom speech is a relatively straight forward process. The nuts and bolts of it are about remembering those who can’t be there with you and publicly thanking everyone that has made the day possible for the bride and groom. This is usually then followed by possibly the only time the groom will show his affection towards his wife while the friends and family look on.

Start the speech with a short introduction of you and the bride, or maybe a small anecdote about how you met. Remember, there may be people there that are distant relatives, or friends of your other half, so may not know you that well. A short story can help to relax you as you break the ice with the audience.

In my own wedding I started the speech about when I introduced my wife to my grandmother, who had since passed away. I told the story and led it into explaining that there are many people who we would have loved to be with us but are no longer with us, then proceeded to have a toast for those that are gone but not forgotten.

When it comes to the thank yous, you have two options. You either be incredibly detailed, or breeze through them saying there are too many to thank. One of the biggest issues that arise when you go down the detailed routes, is that everyone that has had a small hand in the day may expect a mention!

The first thank you should be to the people that have made a serious commitment to travel to you to see you get married on your big day. It is custom to thank them and show off how popular you are by how far they have travelled to come see you! After the travel thanks, people who should probably get a mention are:

• Parents
• Any additional financial benefactors
• Bridesmaids
• Groomsmen
• Anyone who is done/doing work for you for free

After these thanks, some couples like to provide gifts to the important people mentioned above. Usually a bunch of flowers or some other personal gift. Something to think about! People who you may also wish to thank are:

• Venue coordinator
• Florist
• Master of Ceremonies
• Thank your suppliers, although it doesn’t take you much to say it, I can assure you it goes a long way!
• Anyone who you feel has gone above and beyond what was required of them

Once the thanks have been completed it is moving onto the star of the show. As a videographer, it is important to us that you say nice things! Usually a story of how you met, when you realised she was the one for you, how you can’t live without her and how much you love her. As uncomfortable as this can be in a public forum, these things need to be said! Although it can be difficult, resist the urge to throw in a joke during this bit. It is often all too common for a groom to say

“I love xxxx because she is beautiful and my soul mate, even though she is a minger.”

I know it can be uneasy sometimes to just be lovey dovey, but when it comes to the wedding film you may appreciate the true emotion!

Once you are finished with the public adoration of your wife, you can turn your attention to the best men. Tradition would dictate that the speech order is father of the bride first, followed be the groom and finally the best man/men. If you want to pull out the jokes, this is the opportunity. They will undoubtedly give you a hard time in their speech, so get in there early if you wish. Introduce them, exit stage left and hope that the upcoming public onslaught isn’t too harsh!

Good luck!