St Patrick's Day speech template (Ireland)
Published 10 October 2026 · Date checked on 5 October 2026 · Written by the Cue Card Converter team at EventProgrammer, event production professionals
St Patrick's Day, Lá Fhéile Pádraig in Irish, is a public holiday in Ireland on 17 March. It honours St Patrick, the country's patron saint, and has grown into a celebration of Irish culture shared by Irish communities and friends of Ireland around the world. People wear green or a sprig of shamrock, towns and cities hold parades, and Dublin hosts a festival of music, dance and street performance. Famous landmarks in many countries are also lit up in green.
- Date
- March 17
- Next dates
- Wednesday 17 March 2027
Friday 17 March 2028
Saturday 17 March 2029 - Country
- Ireland
- Tone
- Cultural celebration
- Typical events
- Irish embassy receptions, community associations and GAA clubs abroad, school assemblies, company celebrations and parade-day gatherings held on or around 17 March.
- Length
- 207 spoken words · about 1.5 min at 130 words a minute · 4 cue cards
The St Patrick's Day speech, ready as cue cards
A complete host script in 4 cards, about 1.5 minutes of speaking. Open it in the editor to add your names, change the card size or highlights, and print.
- CÉAD MÍLE FÁILTE1 / 4
Good evening, everyone, and céad míle fáilte, a hundred thousand welcomes, to {Venue}. I'm {Your name}, and on behalf of {Organisation} it's lovely to see so much green in one room. Whether your family comes from Cork, Chicago or somewhere else entirely, tonight you are among friends. - WHO WAS PATRICK?2 / 4
Patrick is remembered as the patron saint of Ireland, and 17 March is traditionally held to be the day he died, in the fifth century. Over the centuries his feast day grew into a celebration of all things Irish: music, dance, sport, language and storytelling. Today it is marked wherever Irish people have made a home. - A TASTE OF TRADITION3 / 4
Music has always travelled with the Irish, so it is fitting that we hear some now. Please give a warm welcome to {Musicians or dance school}, who will play a few traditional tunes. Feel free to tap your feet, and if you know the steps, do join in.
[TRADITIONAL MUSIC AND DANCE] - A TOAST4 / 4
Thank you to {Musicians or dance school}. Before you head back to the food and the craic, please raise a glass, whatever is in it. To Ireland, to Irish people at home and abroad, and to everyone who celebrates with them. Sláinte! And Lá Fhéile Pádraig sona daoibh: a happy St Patrick's Day to you all.
Red is used only for names, titles, organisations, dates, times and section headings. Replace the words in {curly brackets} with your own details; lines in [SQUARE BRACKETS] are stage directions and are not read aloud.
How to adapt it
- The shamrock is the symbol people look for. A small sprig or a green buttonhole for the host and speakers is enough; novelty hats suit a party better than an embassy reception or a formal dinner.
- If you use Irish phrases such as céad míle fáilte, sláinte or Lá Fhéile Pádraig sona daoibh, ask an Irish speaker to check your pronunciation beforehand. A phrase said with care is warmly received.
- Keep the focus on music, language, sport and community rather than drinking. Offer a good non-alcoholic option for the toast so that children, drivers and non-drinkers can join in.
- St Patrick's Day is also a Christian feast day, and some guests may have attended a church service that morning. Refer to Patrick simply as the patron saint and keep the rest of the script cultural.
Print and rehearse
“Edit and print these cards” opens the script in the free cue card maker, where you can choose A5, 4 × 6 or 3 × 5 inch cards, print several per sheet with cut lines or export PDF, PowerPoint and Word, and rehearse full screen in practice mode. To write your own programme around it, see how to write an MC script and the run of show template.
Sources
Date and background checked on 5 October 2026 against: What is St Patrick's Day? | Ireland.ie. Customs vary between organisations and regions; always follow the official programme of your event.