Wedding Speech Tips & Ideas
Giving a wedding speech at a reception is one of the big moments of a wedding, so it helps to know the etiquette before stepping up to the microphone. A clear plan, a short outline, and a few personal stories are usually all it takes to be remembered for the right reasons.
Wedding speeches are often the most nerve-wracking part of the day for friends and family of the newlyweds, but a little structure goes a long way. The guides below walk through what to say, when to say it, and how to keep it warm without going long.
Best Man Speeches
The best man traditionally speaks just before the champagne toast. A good best man speech thanks the couple, says something memorable about the groom, honors the groomsmen, and keeps things moving. Read the Best Man guide for tips on making it memorable without overrunning the moment.
Groom Speech
Writing a groom speech can be tricky simply because there is rarely much time to sit down and put ideas on paper. A simple structure — thank the guests, thank the parents, thank the bride — is usually enough. See the Groom Speech guide for step-by-step help.
Father of the Bride
A father of the bride speech is among the most sentimental moments of the reception. Managing the emotion, drawing on life experience, and understanding the duties of the day all matter. Open the Father of the Bride guide.
Maid of Honor & BrideThe maid of honor speaks after the best man, and a short, heartfelt toast works best. For the bride, a brief, imaginative speech — including a self-introduction and the story of how the couple met — is often plenty. Find both guides linked from the blog.
Wedding Speech Blog
Personal stories, practical guides, and discussions on writing speeches for the roles above. Recent posts include a first-person account of preparing a father of the bride speech, a look at whether free online examples are good enough, and a guide to overcoming the five biggest wedding speech obstacles. Visit the blog for the full archive.
| Role | When they speak | Core focus |
|---|---|---|
| Best Man | Just before the champagne toast | Honor the groom, thank the couple, toast |
| Groom | After the best man | Thank guests, parents, and the bride |
| Father of the Bride | Early in the reception | Welcome guests, sentiment, duties of the day |
| Maid of Honor | After the best man | Supportive, heartfelt, brief |
| Bride | Often toward the close | Introduce yourself, share your story |
Bride's Speech: Thanking the Groom's Parents with Heart
Modern Australian weddings are no longer bound by old-school traditions, and a bride giving her own address has become a common sight at receptions from Sydney Harbour to the Barossa Valley. More couples are rewriting the rulebook, splitting speeches between the father of the bride, the groom, the best man, and the bride herself, sometimes with a maid of honour offering her own words as well.
Saying thank you to the groom's parents is one of the most meaningful parts of that speech. Done well, it acknowledges the family who raised your partner, welcomes them warmly into your future, and sets a gracious tone for the entire evening. Done badly, it can feel awkward, rushed, or overly sentimental in a way that loses the room.
Why a Bride's Speech Fits Australian Wedding Culture
Australian couples have long preferred a relaxed, egalitarian approach to celebrations, and the rising popularity of the bride's speech reflects that shift. Under the federal Marriage Act 1961, ceremonies can be tailored by the couple, and receptions have followed suit with a similarly personal feel. In cities like Brisbane, Perth, and Adelaide, it's now routine for the bride to share a few minutes of reflection after the formal toasts.
The change also responds to a practical reality: many couples fund their own weddings, meaning both families have invested time, money, and emotional labour into the day. Skipping the bride's voice entirely can feel like an oversight, especially when her own parents and her partner's parents have both played significant supporting roles.
Choosing the Right Words for the Groom's Parents
Specificity turns a generic thank you into something the family will remember. Rather than saying "thanks for raising such a great guy," name a few details: the Sunday lunches, the phone call during a tough work week, the offer of the spare room when you were renovating in Melbourne's inner west. A small, honest detail often lands harder than a polished compliment.
It's worth acknowledging the connection between the families, especially if they haven't had much time together before. A line that mentions your mum already exchanging recipes with his dad signals you're thinking about the bigger picture, not just your own romance. If you're still drafting your broader speech structure, the Wedding Speech Digest library offers practical templates you can adapt.
Balancing Humour and Sincerity
Australian rooms tend to respond to dry, self-deprecating humour rather than grand theatrical moments. A light joke about how you initially misunderstood his mum's famous pavlova recipe, or how his dad offered you a beer before the formal photos, can ease into the thank you without sounding forced.
Resist the urge to pile on too many gags. The thank you to the groom's parents should sit closer to the sincere end of the spectrum, even if the rest of your speech is peppered with laughs. Keep the humour quick, then return to warmth. That pace tends to play well at receptions where guests range from his conservative uncle to your mates from Fremantle.
Where to Place the Thank You in Your Speech
Most brides find the thank you works best after acknowledging their own parents and before proposing the formal toast to the couple. That way the new family doesn't feel like an afterthought, but the moment also sits within a natural emotional arc that builds toward the toast itself.
A workable structure looks like this: a brief opening thank you to guests, a paragraph for your own parents, a paragraph for his parents, a short section about your partner, and a closing toast. Aim for the thank you to his family to last around 60 to 90 seconds of spoken time. Anything longer risks dragging the pace of the reception.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
One frequent slip is making the section too long, especially if nerves make the words spill out. Another is treating it like a roast, which can leave older relatives feeling uncomfortable at a formal inner-city venue or a relaxed country barn wedding alike. A third is forgetting to name the parents directly, instead referring vaguely to "his family," which can read as dismissive.
Avoid mentioning money unless the parents made a specific, generous contribution that guests already know about. Resist the urge to apologise for anything, whether it's a delayed wedding after a Covid postponement or a smaller-than-expected guest list. Confidence and gratitude always read better than hedging.
Phrases and Etiquette Pointers Worth Borrowing
When you're staring at a blank page, a few tested phrases can anchor your own words. Mix them with personal stories so the speech still sounds like you.
Ways to frame the thank you:
Etiquette points to keep in mind:
If you're also helping a sister or close friend shape her own words, the maid of honor speeches guide offers a useful parallel structure.
My daughter asked me to speak as her father of the bride. The note about keeping the emotion in check while still being sentimental was the most useful line in the guide.
As a groom, I appreciated the warning against a long list of thanks. I am cutting my thank-yous down to a few key people and keeping the rest short.