A HILARIOUS video shows an Irish priest’s side-splitting reaction after forgetting to utter the famous line “You may now kiss the bride” to a couple waiting at the altar.
Maddelin and Ben Butcher got hitched at Francis Xavier church in Berrima, New South Wales under officiant Father Michael Healy when they experienced a bit of a hiccup in the ceremony.
Maddelin, 26, and Ben, 29, were waiting patiently for the pronouncement of their marriage, when it appeared Father Healy had forgotten the most important part.
Video shows the pair standing with their hands binded in front of the altar in silence as Father Healy appears to have already began to get ready to head back down the aisle.
Maddelin can be heard whispering to him: “Do we have our kiss? First kiss?”
The confused Father Healy replies bewilderedly: “Sorry?”
Maddelin repeats the question whilst other guests in the ceremony softly say “Kiss” in an attempt to jog his memory.
Father Healy then appears to realise his mistake, saying “Oh” in a lightbulb moment as he walks back to the podium amid a chorus of chuckles and chants of “Kiss, kiss, kiss” from friends and family.
Posing at his lectern, Father Healy then hilariously says: “You don’t expect an old bachelor now to remember something like that?”
Attendees are left in stitches at the old priest’s quick-witted quip as Maddelin and Ben throw their heads back in laughter.
The laughter then dies out to a moment of silence as the waiting couple look to Father Healy for confirmation, who stares back before casually adding: “Well, do what you have to do.”
The room erupts into laughter again as Ben lifts up his wife’s vale, with the pair enjoying their first kiss to a round of cheers and applause from all in the church.
The video was posted onto TikTok on Friday by Puzzleman Productions, who recorded and photographed the pair’s wedding.
The clip has received over 127,000 likes and more than 500 comments from users left in stitches at the priest’s wit with the couple.
One user wrote: “Well, that turned out better than if he remembered to say it in the first place.”
Another commented: “Irish humor for the win, always!”
A third joked: “‘Do what you have to do’ will become their love catchphrase.”
Another said: “He saved it with the bachelor joke.”
A fifth wrote: “I’d be raging if the priest didn’t say ‘You may kiss your bride’…some girls dream of that moment.”
Speaking today Maddelin said: “Our wedding day, like most would say, was incredibly special to Ben and I.
“More so because Father Healy agreed to come out of his semi-retirement to wed us; it wasn’t something he did anymore.
“Father Healy has been Ben’s family priest his whole life and we were so honored for him to agree to perform our ceremony.
“The seal of our matrimony, our first kiss, being innocently forgotten is one of our favourite stories reminiscing on our wedding day.
“His words, ‘You can’t expect an old bachelor like myself to remember that’ left our family and friends in stitches of laughter.
“Even though there was a hitch, we got hitched and have our hilarious memory!
“The guests all thought it was quite funny, Father Healy handled the situation wonderfully.
“You can actually hear in the background all of our family and friends calling out to remind him of the kiss.
“I think it created a fantastic lead up to our first kiss, everyone was cheering when we finally shared our first kiss as husband and wife.
“I have several friends who often tell others about what happened and say it was overall one of the best ceremonies they have seen.”
Maddelin and Ben finished off their touching ceremony with a trip to McDonald’s, where the pair met for the first time.
