Prepare your wedding speech
Plain, practical guidance for every stage: finding the story, getting the length right, knowing when you're on, and standing up without your hands shaking.
How to write a wedding speech
A step-by-step method for turning real memories into a speech that sounds like you talking.
How long should a wedding speech be?
Time ranges and word counts for every role, plus how to time your speech and trim it.
Wedding speech order and reception timing
Common US and UK running orders, rehearsal dinner options and how to time speeches around the meal.
Wedding speech openings, endings and safe jokes
Opening lines that earn attention, endings that land, and a checklist for jokes that won’t backfire.
How to practice a wedding speech and calm your nerves
A practical rehearsal routine and on-the-day tips for steady, confident delivery.
Wedding speeches for complex family situations
Careful, optional wording for loss, divorce, blended families, estrangement and families meeting across cultures.
Prefer to learn from finished speeches? Read the annotated examples or start from a fill-in template.