Being the Best Man For Dummies
by Dominic Bliss
Being the Best Man For Dummies
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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data: A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN-13: 978-0-470-02657-1
ISBN-10: 0-470-02657-X
Printed and bound in Great Britain by TJ International, Padstow, Cornwall.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
About the Author
Dominic Bliss is former editor of the mens wedding magazine Stag & Groom. He has been a journalist since the early 1990s and currently works as a freelance writer for various mens interest and sports magazines. Married himself in 2003, hes at that stage in his life where many summer Saturdays are spent attending friends weddings. The tally of nuptials was up to 32 at the last count.
Author Acknowledgements
Thanks to Nick Hutchings for providing crucial contacts and advice. To Alison Yates and Simon Bell at Wiley for constant support and reminding me that not all stag parties should result in near-death experiences for the groom. And to my wife Sally, without whom my knowledge of weddings would be severely limited. If you hadnt said, I do, this book would never have been written.
Publishers Acknowledgments
Were proud of this book; please send us your comments through our Dummies online registration form located at www.dummies.com/register/.
Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following:
Acquisitions, Editorial, and Media Development
Project Editor: Simon Bell
Commissioning Editor: Alison Yates
Copy Editor: Colette Holden
Executive Editor: Jason Dunne
Executive Project Editor: Martin Tribe
Cover Photo: Corbis/Jutta Klee
Cartoons: Ed McLachlan
Production
Project Coordinator: Jennifer Theriot
Layout and Graphics: Andrea Dahl, Denny Hager, Stephanie D. Jumper
Proofreaders: Laura Albert, Brian H. Walls
Indexer: Techbooks
Publishing and Editorial for Consumer Dummies
Diane Graves Steele, Vice President and Publisher, Consumer Dummies
Joyce Pepple, Acquisitions Director, Consumer Dummies
Kristin A. Cocks, Product Development Director, Consumer Dummies
Michael Spring, Vice President and Publisher, Travel
Kelly Regan, Editorial Director, Travel
Publishing for Technology Dummies
Andy Cummings, Vice President and Publisher, Dummies Technology/ General User
Composition Services
Gerry Fahey, Vice President of Production Services
Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services
Introduction
I n a previous existence I was launch editor and feature writer for a mens wedding magazine called Stag & Groom. Among the articles we published, there was loads of no- nonsense advice on stag parties, speech content and wedding suits. Inevitably, whenever friends or colleagues got engaged or appointed best man, the first person they would call for advice was me. Every springtime, just as the wedding season was starting to hot up, I used to get at least a couple such calls a week, and the two topics they would be panicking about most were the stag party and the speech.
This book will make sure you get them right.
About This Book
I can safely say Ive been to more weddings in my life than Ive had birthdays. Over the last few years, in particular, as Ive waved reluctantly goodbye to my early 30s, Ive found myself dusting down my morning suit all too regularly.
As a result, Ive sat through more best mans speeches than I care to remember. Some have been witty, some have been dull, some have been cheesy and some have been hilarious. One thing a lot of them have shared, though, is an opening line that goes a bit like this: Being appointed best man is a bit like being asked to make love to the Queen. Its an honour, but its something youd really rather not do!