Best Man
As Weddings are so totally individual, it will be up to the Bride and Groom to decide what your role will be. However the following should give you a guideline.
Generally, you should be on hand to help out the groom, with whatever tasks he has been assigned, such as arranging transport on the day, organising the honeymoon and sorting out what you, the groom and the ushers will be wearing. Your second task ahead of the wedding day is the all important Stag Night - see our section on 'Stag & Hen' for tips & ideas.
On the day, your first priority is to be cool, calm & collected. You need to ensure that all the final arrangements have been made and that you get the Groom to the ceremony early, ready to welcome the guests. You need to have collected the buttonholes and ensure that the rings are kept on you in a safe place!
If the wedding party has a Toastmaster, this will allow you to relax slightly after the ceremony, if not, it is your job to co-ordinate the guests for the photographs and ensure that no-one gets left behind when the party heads to the reception. The ushers should also help out with this. At the reception, you will need to liase with the Bridal Party to announce the cutting of the cake and the speeches, using part of your speech to read out telegrams, emails and cards from absent friends. Do have a look at our Speeches section for more advice.
The First Dance
The best man should join the dancing, with the chief bridesmaid, when the newlyweds first break apart to dance with their in-laws. The rest of the ushers and bridesmaids are also invited to the dance floor at this time. Once the song has finished, all the guests are invited to join the party on the dance floor. If you are worried about having two left feet, there are companies available to teach you steps to fit the first dance song, or you can just take a few lessons to boost your confidence!