'Compering' a wedding?

Check out an old guy on YouTube called Bernard Manning. A master of the craft. Let us know how it goes.

😂 will do, cheers!

Not exactly 'compered' but I was asked to be chief usher for a mate's wedding. Bit of an odd one; isn't the usher's duty just to ask bride or groom? and then sit them accordingly, leaving a couple of rows free at the front for family and bridesmaids, etc.?

Not in this case. He felt kind of obliged (and wanted) to have his younger brother as best man. But, his brother was a bit shall we say 'flakey' and my role was to oversee the organisation on the day and most importantly, make sure that the brother got to the speeches without having got arseholed first.

It was a wonderful experience and a nightmare in equal parts. The best man as it turned out needed no real managing and the speech bit went fine, but there was a road closure between church and reception, pre-sat nav, as a result photographer got lost on the way to the venue so photos were delayed, which meant the reception drinks started to run out a bit.... then we had to delay the food by 20 mins or so at which the chef had a hissy fit and needed talking round as well......elderly relatives giving the impression they would starve if not fed in the next 10 minutes, and so on.

Fortunately there was another one of the Uni lads I co-opted in and between us like swans we got it all sorted, so it wasn't until well after the honeymoon that the groom even knew how frantically we were paddling beneath the surface.

I'd honestly recommend having someone like that -either you or someone with you. If not needed, great, but you want the happy couple's day to go without a hitch (well, maybe one hitch 😉 )

Keeping energy up - depends on the wedding itself. Some of the best bits of mine and this one were the lulls, just moving around and chatting to different groups in between the set piece elements. And then everyone's mad for it when the music starts!

I've been to a few weddings over the years. I've never felt much need to compare them. Some were better than others, I suppose.

Channel your inner Ray Von…

Isn't this basically the Best Man's job?

Maybe have a meat raffle after the meal and before the disco?

The thought of enforced banter and light-hearted games at a wedding reception is awful. The “lulls” are when you chat to people, socialise and catch a breath rather than something that needs to be eradicated.

OP, just prior to the bride walking down the isle…

A round of Death Wink?

Never heard of this before! Are they just worried cos all their family & friends are really boring or something? What’s wrong with just chatting & drinking?

And [i]games[/i]..! Just no.

The thought of enforced banter and light-hearted games at a wedding reception is awful. The “lulls” are when you chat to people, socialise and catch a breath rather than something that needs to be eradicated.

Rubbish, everyone know that there ain't no fun like compulsory fun.

I have been asked by a friend at work to compere their wedding
...
Meeting his partner for the first time tomorrow evening

Isn't this slightly odd?

I've never heard of a wedding requiring a compere beyond what the venue staff will be used to doing professionally, or Best Man duties. But it sounds like something you'd ask of a bestest friend, not a work colleague who's never even met your partner.

Have I missed the point, are you a consomethinge public speaker and he's thought "we'll ask him, he's ace"? That's kinda cool if so. It's something I'd like to be better at. I do say "erm" an awful lot.

Whatever you do, the opening line needs to be:

This is the second time today I have stood up from a warm seat, with a piece of paper in my hand....

.....and out yourself as a standywiper?! No thanks!

The thought of enforced banter and light-hearted games at a wedding reception is awful.

And games..! Just no.

Isn't this just "weddings" generally? It's a day of pandering to the bride's flights of fancy and, if we're very lucky, the groom's also. If they want games, we get games. If they want everyone dressed as Ronald MacDonald, best go shoe-shopping.

I was always flat against getting married until I had a sudden realisation that I could subvert it. My wedding was far from what might be thought of as traditional. In my vows I solemnly promised that I was never going to give her up, never going to let her down... I heard it go round the room behind me, a a mate over my shoulder tried to stifle a snort after the first line*, the lad next to him got the giggles, by the time I got past "never going to run around" I was inaudible because the room was in hysterics. Even the registrar was desperately trying to keep a serious face on and failing badly.

That to me is what a wedding should be. Stuff pomp and circumstance, have some goddamn fun with people you love.

(* - no, not like that)

It’s a real honour to be asked, and of course I want to a great job for him.

Sounds like you should go back to him and ask what he actually expects you to do. At the moment it seems a bit vague and a lot odd

My gf is a wedding planner, and I play about 100 weddings a year in a function band, so plenty of experience in this area.

Totally unnecessary imo, and I've very very rarely come across it. I was 'master of ceremonies' for my mate.....which basically involved introducing them into the room prior to the wedding breakfast as their best man was a very nervous public speaker. I was really touched that they'd asked me to do it, but it's really a case of keeping it very simple.

One wedding from last year springs to mind, where they'd got a mate 'running the day'. Total car crash stuff. It sounds like he was given a similar brief to the one given to you.....unless you're a great undiscovered stand up/presenter, then it will go down fairly poorly ime. Wedding audiences really don't need a load of banter from a bloke-likely drunk-that knows the groom.

Venue staff/photographers/musicians do this stuff multiple times per week, will do it better than you, whilst sober and it's generally all that is required.

Maybe suggest the introducing them into the room/announcing the first dance and cake cut? That's the sort of thing I do multiple times per week and my advice for that would be, leave out any attempts at banter!

Could do it in an Alan Partridge style:

”single-handed Sue there tackling the buffet”

was ‘master of ceremonies’ for my mate

I was this for my sister's wedding, no one really told me what I was meant to do but "apparently" I wasn't supposed to get the band drunk or try and get off with my new brother in law's sister or get her stoned - who knew 🤫

It does sound at the best unnecessary, and at the worst like an infinite best man's speech that isn't funny and relies on too many in-jokes. As has been mentioned previously I think you'd add much more value acting as the person who deals with any problems and lets the bride and groom just get on with having a great day (if they don't have that already).

I've been to a few recently with an MC/Compere.

Yes it's basically a professional dressed in doing the job of Best Man / Usher. Basically stand up, ding your glass, thanks for coming, hope you're having a lovely day, please get on the bus to go to the reception, drink your drinks, eat your dinner, speeches will be ......., etc, etc.

The human embodiment of some upcycled pallet wood painted with chalk paint to look like an antique signpost.

🤣