Call us biased, but we think Irish weddings are pretty special, between the baffling traditions, the cringeworthy playlists, and the fact that they routinely last for 24 hours! That's why we decided to put an Irish spin on a beloved wedding game to create Irish Wedding Bingo!

Irish wedding bingo works like this: couples issue their guests with specially-made bingo cards, featuring phrases and clichés from the wonderfully weird world of Irish weddings, and the first person to complete a full line wins a prize. To help you put the game together, we've created a free download of printable bingo cards, plus a handy step-by-step guide. You can even use the cards to make a drinking game (if you don't mind your guests getting extra tipsy during the reception, of course!)

Image by Wild Tide Love via One Fab Day

How to Play Irish Wedding Bingo

Step 1: Download the pdf below. It contains 16 Irish wedding bingo cards in total, each with a different combination of Irish wedding phrases and clichés. Print it off as many times as you need for your number of guests.

Step 2. Place one card at each place setting, with pens or counters. This should be done before dinner to provide a talking point for guests who don't know each other.

Step 3: Arrange a couple of prizes for your winners. These can be joke prizes, or even a bottle of champagne or round of drinks for the table.

Step 4: Set the rules of the game. You may decide to give a prize to the first person to complete a vertical line, the first person to complete a horizontal line, or both!

Step 5: Ask the first speech-giver to explain how it's going to work. They should tell guests;

• to keep their eyes and ears peeled for any of the phrases or clichés on their card
• to mark off each one as it happens
• to shout "Bingo!" when they complete a vertical or horizontal line, depending on the rule you've set.

How to Play The Irish Wedding Bingo Drinking Game

To turn Irish wedding bingo into a drinking game, simply complete Steps 1 and 2, and for Step 4, ask the speechgiver to explain the following rule: every time a phrase or cliché from your card appears, drink!

Image by Jurgita Lukos via One Fab Day

Designing Your Own Irish Wedding Bingo Cards?

You may prefer your stationer to design bespoke Irish Wedding Bingo cards to fit in with your themes and colour palettes for the big day. Or you may have your heart set on a spot of DIY. No problem! We've printed our favourite Irish wedding clichés below for you to use. Just remember to use them in different combinations to make the game more competitive!

• widespread sunburn
• crying dad
• reference to the weather in the speeches
• someone asks the priest for a selfie
• use of the phrase "notions"
• "It's far from Prosecco we were reared!"
• a guest watches the match on their phone
• rain
• everyone is starving
• the best man writes his speech during dinner
• betting on the length of the speeches
• betting on the first dance
• cocktail sausages
• crisp sandwiches
• no-one can keep track of their drinks rounds
• someone bursts into song
• an Irish mammy asks if you've had enough to eat
• impromptu Irish dancing performance
• Maniac 2000
• Galway Girl (Mundy version)
• Galway Girl (Ed Sheeran version)
• Riverdance
• bouquets for the mammies
• someone asks when the resident's bar closes
• someone wraps a tie around their head
• "Weren't they blessed with the weather in the end?"
• two guests who've never met realise they're related
• the people at Table 1 chant "We're number one!"
• shots
• a woman removes her shoes before 7pm
• someone orders the beef "well done"
• "You're next!"
• a winning Irish Eurovision entry

Download Your Free Irish Wedding Speech Bingo Cards!

Please not that this free printable is copyright One Fab Day and is not for commercial use.

Irish Wedding Bingo Printable Download

Looking for a stationer to create gorgeous paper goods for your wedding? You'll find our favourites here!