I took my wife’s name and revealed my decision during the speech of my groom at our wedding. The reaction has been shocking

The speech of the groom on a wedding usually includes gushing thanks to his beautiful bride and the loving families of the couple.

But when Jack Legg married his wife Sophie in May 2022, he ended his apology.

“I delivered a bomb to our 130 guests as I told them:” I would like to take out an apology for my father – I am really sorry, but I am taking Sophie’s name … From now on I am Jack Moody. ”

Jack’s father took the news in his pass, but other family members quickly shared their disappointment. “My aunt said she was very sad that I would no longer be a legg,” says Jack. “That made me laugh because she is not a legg since they get married.”

Jack, 31 – who works as a Groundsman on a studies farm – has discovered that despite the progress in the field of equality, a man who takes the name of his wife still draws widespread criticism.

“The reaction is openly rejected from some of both men and women with whom I have spoken,” says Jack, “some of them my own age, which is always surprising than hearing older generations, who tells me that it” emasculates “and” feminine. “

Sophie and Jack Moody, both 31, on their wedding day where Jack announced that he took the name of his new wife

“I don’t agree with that. My masculinity is not influenced by the last name I have. Why would tradition dictate that women change their name, as long as men don’t do that? I often think that equal rights are not enough; Women owe some repayment after all these years. ‘

Sophie, also 31, adds: ‘Friends say things like:’ Why did you do that? ‘They assume that there has been a family-brush or that I stamped my feet, and Jack must be viewed to agree. I also had people chasted and say that I should have taken Jack’s name ‘because that is the way it has always been’. ‘

But times change. Although an increasing number of women choose to retain their maiden name or to keep them with a double barrel with the surname of their new husband, there is also a quiet but growing trend for men who dump their own family name to take their wives instead.

A recent YouGOV survey of 2,192 adults aged 18 to 34 showed that only a third of young British women want to take the last name of their partner when they get married, while no fewer than a third of the men said they would “feel positive” about a man who takes their partner’s closing name.

In practice, however, only 1 percent of the men of all ages said they would actually be willing to take their partner’s last name and 56 percent still expect their husband to accept theirs – perhaps afraid of Jibes from their friends.

Jack remembers that his friends laugh when they heard his announcement. They told him that they miss the making of rude jokes and rhymes with legg – although they quickly realized that Moody was a gift that would give them even larger food for chatter.

Sophie has labeled ‘selfish’ and some assume that she has ‘Henpecked’ in ‘Henpecked’

Jack and Sophie met in 2016 through a mutual friend and two years later Jack presented a diamond and ruby ​​ring on holiday in Sardinia. So far, so traditional.

“Growing up, other children had always teased me about my last name, who called me a moody cow, so part of me had looked forward to the day I could change,” Sophie recalls. “But after reading comments from other expectant brides that say they didn’t want to change their name, but had the feeling that they had no choice, I had a complete change in heart.”

She announced Jack: “Why the hell do I have to change my name only because I am a woman?”

Jack said he didn’t care if she didn’t want to be Mrs. Legg, getting married was what mattered.

For a while they enjoyed any use of their own last names, to a discussion about the names of future children.

“It makes me furious that people simply assume that children will take their father’s last name,” says Sophie. ‘We agreed that we wanted our Moody to be called, as a recognition of the fact that I would be the one who does the hard work with pregnancy and birth. And Moody-Legg would sound crazy. ‘

Then Jack said he would have liked an actor and that Jack Moody would have made a cool artist name.

“It was the perfect solution,” he reflects. ‘Although I am really close to my family, my parents are divorced, so mommy is no longer a legg and I am the least patriarchal person because I am a feminist.

‘But I was afraid that my father might have been upset, so I told him before the wedding to gauge his reaction.

“He said:” Yes, Legg is not great, right? “He really never had a break. Just like me, he does not feel that we need the same last name to feel connected. I have a brother, so the legg name will continue through him. ‘

Sophie, however, has been labeled ‘selfish’ and some assume that she ‘Henpecked’ has ‘Henpecked’ in it.

‘Just after we are married, someone commented on a wedding forum that had said her fiancée that if she did not accept his last name, their wedding would be out. She was very upset because her father had raised her alone.

“When I placed a supporting comment, explained that I had kept my name and had no regrets, other woman label me selfish!”

Jack adds: ‘It is a load outdated nonsense. Everyone has an opinion – but we are very happy that we have done things in our way. ‘