How to prepare for the Father of the Bride Speech

When most people think of wedding speeches their thoughts turn to the best man, a long tradition of gently mocking, but affectionate, humor at the bride groom's expense. However, the best man - and the groom for that matter - aren't the only ones speaking on the big day and as Father of the Bride, your speech will be eagerly awaited too.

Whenever it comes to public speaking there are several things to consider, which I'll discuss on this blog over time. But here is an overview of how to approach the task, which although you may be dreading can actually be quite enjoyable on the day.

And for this introductory post I'll just talk about brainstorming for ideas. Forget about the protocol, the introduction and how to finish your speech at the moment - that's basically textbook stuff which can be copied and changed to suit you afterwards. At the moment you need to work out what you are going to talk about and get some notes down on paper.

And the good news is that by spending a little time preparing and writing your speech followed by a little more practicing what you're going to say, your speech will flow perfectly. Nerves really are for the unprepared, and the preparation won't take too much of your time. So, lets get started.

There are two essentials in any Father of the Bride speech:

• Talk about your daughter and how proud you are of her and why
• Welcome your son in law to your family and mention his good points

When you talk about your daughter, you can talk about many things; comment on her looks on the big day, remember her childhood fondly, something she has done for you, her career... anything that really does make you proud for her to call you dad.

When it comes to the groom, hopefully you like him and approve of the marriage. Even if you don't, he will certainly have some positive points - you may not have experienced them directly, but I'm sure your daughter has mentioned them to you, but in most cases you'll know him already and hopefully have a good relationship.

In addition to this you might also want to talk about marriage and particularly what you have gained from it or enjoyed. Even if you are now separated or divorced, there will be some positives you have taken from the experience!

Just write down anything that comes into your head while you think about these topics and get it down on paper. You can flesh it out and edit it all at a later stage, but it is better to have too many ideas than struggle to write your speech. That's all for now, I'll write about the next stage in a day or so.