So, you’re due to give a father of the bride speech and already your emotions are mixed. There’s the joy you’ll have welcoming your close family and friends, but also dread your speech won’t make the grade on the big day.
It’s not simply the pressure of public speaking, it’s wanting your father of the bride speech to be the best it can be. To capture your daughter’s best qualities without being over-proud; to tell funny stories without embarrassing her; to cover her life and achievements without making it sound like a CV.
But this pressure’s a good thing. It shows your expectations are high. You want to do your daughter proud and deliver a truly memorable speech.
This is where I can help you. I’m a professional speech writer who’s written funny and heartwarming father of the bride speeches for over 10 years. With my TV and radio background, I have the expertise to craft a bespoke speech you’ll be itching to read out.
Many of my customers tell me they’ve gone from “can’t bear the thought of doing my father of the bride speech” to “can’t wait to do it!”
I’ve also collated many of my father of the bride tips below. These will help you avoid common mistakes but, most importantly, get laughter, a few tears and a look in the eyes that says: “Wow. Thank you, dad!”
Buy my bespoke wedding speech or editing package today. Goodbye stress. Hello “can’t wait”!
My Father of The Bride Speech Writing Packages
Bespoke wedding speech
- you fill in a simple questionnaire and I write the best father of the bride speech for you. Let me know the welcomes, the thanks and the stories, and I do the rest. The fee includes any changes you might want.
Wedding speech edit
- the service for when you feel your speech could have more “oomph” - better jokes, finesse or a different length. Not sure how good your speech is? Send over your current draft and I can give you my no-obligation thoughts for free.
Father Of The Bride Speech Topics & Tips
Traditionally, you’ll be the first speaker. Your opening paragraphs will set the tone for your speech. And your speech will set the mood for the reception. So, the question to ask yourself is not just what to say, but how to say it.
Things to consider include: the balance between sentiment and jokes; how chatty or formal you want to be; and how you want your daughter and the guests to feel after you’ve sat down. Is your primary focus that they were entertained and heard some fun stories or that they have had a wonderful trip down memory lane covering your daughter’s milestones and achievements. A blend of both is possible.
Every family is different and so is every father of the bride speech. Some potential issues are not being present for part of your daughter’s life or being separated from her mother. Or perhaps there’s been a bereavement and the father of the bride role is being taken by the bride’s mother or brother. Tailoring a speech to ensure the appropriate weight is given to such situations is something I have great experience in doing.
My speech writing service is a truly bespoke offering. When I receive a completed father of the bride speech questionnaire, I can soon tell what sort of speech you’d like to deliver – usually from the type of stories you’ve chosen. If I’m not 100% sure, I always follow up and chat further.
Father Of The Bride Speeches For Every Personality
One question I always ask is: “What proportion of funny and heartfelt would you like”?
The answers are varied. I’ve been asked to write father of the bride speeches with jokes all the way through to others that are full of sentiment with just a sprinkling of humour.
Choose a mix that matches your personality. But I do believe having both is a great combination.
For example, if your daughter has done incredibly well at school or in her job, you could choose to follow it with a joke about her “ending up as Prime Minister/President… if she sets her sights low enough.” You can let everyone know your daughter’s achievements, and have a bit of fun. it removes the risk of sounding like an over-proud dad.
Tips for Writing A Father Of The Bride Speech
- Use an icebreaker or two - everyone will be willing you on. So having a light-hearted remark near the top will give the guests the chance to laugh and show their appreciation.
- Be concise - keep each story fairly brief and you can include more of them and more parts of your daughter’s life.
- Stick to a simple structure - think of your speech as a mini-film. With the welcomes and thanks, you’re introducing the characters. Then it’s the main section with stories about your daughter. Finally, you have the scene it’s been building up to – the most heartfelt part about how proud you are and how much you love your daughter.
Browse some of our blogs below for more Father of the Bride tips!
Need Some Help With Your Father Of The Bride Speech?
Writing an emotional father of the bride speech takes time. And even with unlimited time, not everyone feels they can write the quality of speech they want.
My wedding speech writing service removes that worry. When you hire me, you not only tick “write speech” off your list, you know you’re going to get one that’s been professionally crafted.
And rather than stare at a blank sheet of paper, my questionnaire guides you to the main things you should cover.
Several years of writing father of bride speeches have led to glowing reviews, referrals, and repeat business (one customer has even come back for all three daughters!).
I’d be delighted to help you too.
Feel you might need some help with your speech? Why not get in touch now for a quick chat?
Father Of The Bride FAQs
I’d say 6 – 10 minutes with 8 minutes being the sweet spot. It can cover all the “thank you” admin and a good number of stories.
Bear in mind that a speech heavy on humour will be longer on the day – that audience laughter all adds up. If you feel your speech is too long, here are some things to consider.
You don’t have to name check everyone. Aunt Rosemary probably won’t be offended if her nice hat is not mentioned. It’s a speech not a roll call.
Thanks – can some of these be combined into one sentence? You don’t always have to cut, you can merge.
Story-telling – lose references that aren’t crucial. So, if it happened on a boiling hot day during the family summer holiday in Greece in 20XX, how much of that is relevant to the set up?
However, if you feel your speech is too short and are struggling for inspiration, check out this father of the speech ideas blog post.
Don’t feel the need to cover every one of your daughter’s achievements – you won’t get bonus marks for completeness. In fact, you’ll be marked down for sounding like LinkedIn.
Don’t overload your speech with wonderfuls – after the guests hear the 10th one it will be like hitting a bruise. Either re-work the sentence or use alternatives. That’d be fantastic, fabulous, amazing, brilliant!
Venerating the venue – however beautiful the location is, don’t spend two paragraphs extolling its virtues. You want to give a five-star speech, not a five-star review.
Don’t become the toast taskmaster – you don’t want the guests getting repetitive stress injuries lifting their glasses. One or two toasts is fine: to absent friends and to the bride and groom.
The never-ending story – think of the fun-to-length ratio. If the story contains only one laugh but it takes a Charles Dickens novel to get there, drop it.
Ye olde wedding speech joke – some lines are so old they pre-date the Pyramids. Be aware that many in the audience will have heard it before. Go original if you can.
Roasted groom – ribbing the groom is great but keep it on the right side of the line. Don’t embarrass him. His obsession with Man U, yes. Being allergic to opening his wallet, no.
Don’t feel the need to deliver lines that aren’t you – you’re the father of the bride not doing an audition for Hamlet. If you’re not comfortable being sentimental, you can say so. People will feel the authenticity of what follows.
If there’s backstory with an ex-wife or family member, resist the temptation to use this as a time for reconciliation or recriminations. If it’s the elephant in the room and needs to be mentioned, keep it brief and polite. Everyone will understand.
Here are some quick father of the speech ideas to help you get your speech into shape.
- Icebreakers – ground the joke in something relatable. You could tease the guests with how long you plan to speak for or prepare them for an onslaught of dad jokes.
- Did anything famous happen on the day of the wedding that could be linked? “X years ago today, we witnessed the first man on the moon. Today, my daughter’s gone one better – she’s put Stephen in a Morning Suit.”
- Was the actual day of her birth notable – a mad dash to the hospital that was more like a Hollywood car chase?
- Did she mispronounce things as a child? Could that be linked to the groom’s name or job in some way?
- The early years – do you have an old school report you could quote from? Perhaps she once struggled with maths and is now an accountant.
- Special occasions are also fruitful for stories – think about holidays – did your daughter obsess about her passport photo or pack for a 3-month expedition? How about Christmas? Did she feel her presents under the tree or tell a sibling Santa’s not real?
- Teen passions – was she into Harry Potter or could she quote the lyrics of her favourite boyband backwards (and thereby improve them!)?
- Mistakes and silly accidents – did she ever have to be taken to hospital for a bizarre injury?
You don’t need hilarious or heroic stories for your funny father of the bride speech. The things that mattered to her and the family at the time are what count. It could be the pride in her getting a line in a school play. Or when she passed her driving test and drove on her own for the first time.
If you need further inspiration, try digging out some old photos. They’re a great trigger for stories. And if the above questions have awakened some ideas, take a look at my more extensive blog post, Father of The Bride speech ideas.
Feel you might need some help with your speech? Why not get in touch now for a quick chat?