It seems that 90% of best men want their speech to be remembered most as a funny best man speech. You don’t have as many people saying they want their speech to be remembered as a sentimental one, and fewer still want theirs to be remembered as a serious one. However, strange as it may seem, the key to having a memorable funny speech means you need to have some sentimental, and even some serious lines in it.

If you are reading that opening paragraph with a quizzical expression, I will explain the logic behind it. If a best man intends giving a 5 minute funny best man speech, unless he is a professional performer, chances are that in his 5 minutes of best man jokes and one-liners he will have a few jokes fall flat on their face, and that my friends is how his speech will be remembered. He could give funny speech of four and a half minutes, but it is the 30 seconds of failure that will linger long in the memory.

Even if a best man had 5 minutes of funny best man jokes and awesome one-liners, he would need to bear in mind that the wedding is made up of more than just his friends. Family members don’t really want to hear joke after joke, they want to hear the bride and groom being praised.  The bride and groom don’t want to be embarrassed on their big day with a best man forcing joke after joke.

So how can we write a funny best man speech? You need to blend the right amount of sincerity and humor into it.

The sincere lines would typically involve:

Praising the bride and groom.

Mentioning how honored you are to be best man.

Complimenting the bridesmaids and parents of the bride and groom.

The funny sections could include:

Providing advice to the groom.

A short funny story from his youth.

How you felt when you heard he was getting married

You could also read out a couple of funny faxes or emails that you wrote yourself along with the genuine ones that need to be read out. Your speech needs to end with an inspirational wedding toast as they alone can incur a standing ovation and allow your speech to end on a high.

1.  Content is key

It is essential to do some research in advance and have content in your speech that will either make people smile and feel that you have made an effort as best man rather than just speaking off the top of your head.

Tip: even if you are not comfortable speaking in front of large crowds make sure you have 3 funny or sincere lines, these should be your opening line, closing line and the wedding toast.

2. Don’t speak too fast

The most common mistake a nervous best man will make is to blurt out his lines so quickly that the audience cannot understand what he is saying. This is particularly frustrating if you have taken the time to source great content for your speech, only to have it lost on your audience because you are blurting out your lines.

Tip: have a large glass of water at your table and after every few lines, take a slow gulp from your glass, this will help your composure and as you get further into your speech allow you build the confidence to end on a high.

3. Involve the parents of the bride and groom

One of the loudest rounds of applause you will get during your best man speech is if you take the time to praise the parents of the bride and groom. Everyone is in fantastic form at the wedding and guests are usually particularly delighted for both sets of proud parents, so mention them and compliment them both.

Tip: say, “I’d like to break from tradition and offer a toast to the parents of the bride and groom, they have put tremendous work into making today the special occasion that it is and deserve a special round of applause.”

4. Show appreciation

Best men are expected to be funny, witty, even sarcastic but they are not renowned for showing humility and genuine appreciation for the honor of being made best man by a friend or loved one. Wedding guests love nothing more than a show of emotion, so in between your jokes and one-liners take the time to mention how much the groom’s friendship means to you.

Tip: say “The groom is a great friend who gives without thought of receipt, he is the prototype of what any best friend should be and I am very proud to be his best man today.”

5.End on a high

Like me, I’m sure you have been guest at a wedding where a lazy best man ends with “I’d like to toast the bride and groom” and then instead of delivering a toast just says “to the bride and groom”, the toast is vital not least because it will be your final remark of the evening more than likely so make sure you end on a high.

Tip: when introducing your toast say, “there are a many wedding toasts available on the internet but I selected this one as I believe it reflects the friendship and love the bride and groom have for each other.”

Aside from these suggestions the most important piece of advice I can give you is to be yourself, you were chosen to be best man because of who you are, so don’t try and change that on the wedding day.

The honor of being best man is often bestowed upon the celebrity shoulders of famous stars from the world’s of music and film, today we look at 4 of those famous best men. You would imagine that nerves would not be a problem for them as they are so used to speaking in front of large audiences but you’d never know as best man speeches can test the most professional of speakers.

Michael Jackson

Though now divorced Liza Minnelli and David Gest’s best man on their wedding day was none other than Michael Jackson. His best man speech might have been a “thriller” but then again it could have been “bad” either way it would have been fascinating to hear.

Adam Clayton

In 1982 when Bono was a little-known singer in a new Irish rock group U2, he married his childhood sweetheart Ali in a ceremony in Dublin. When choosing a best man, Bono found what he was looking for in the shape of U2 bass player Adam Clayton. U2 became one of the world’s most successful rock groups while Bono and Ali remain one of music’s most endearing couples.

Stephen Fry

The English comedian and actor Stephen Fry deserves special mention as he was best man at the weddings of two famous celebrities Hugh Laurie in 1989 and Rowan Atkinson in 1990. I’m sure there wasn’t a dry eye in the “house” at Hugh Laurie’s wedding and doubt that there were any “beans” on the menu at Rowan Atkinson’s wedding.

Robert De Niro

When his son chose to get married he kept it a family affair by asking his father, the legend of the silver screen, Robert De Niro, to be his best man. I bet there was nobody brave enough to heckle him during his best man speech, however if anyone did the response may well have been “you talkin’ to me?”

Whether you are famous or not, it doesn’t really matter as long as you prepare your speech in advance, ensure that your best man jokes, and your opening lines are researched, enabling you to give the speech that a famous actor or pop star would be proud of.