No divorce for wedding friendships Sarah Farrow (right) and Michelle Nielsen / Pic: Simon Chillingworth Source: The Daily Telegraph Michelle Nielsen and Sarrah Farrow on the big day. CHOOSING a modern wedding party is a tribute to enduring friendships, with most brides and grooms remaining close to their best men and maids of honour long after the confetti is thrown. The most popular choice for the traditional wedding roles are school friends (45.8 per cent), despite most couples marrying a decade after leaving the classroom. An online survey by The Daily Telegraph found siblings were the second most popular choice enlisted for the post of best man or maid of honour (24.8 per cent) while payback for previously serving in the role was responsible for 4.9 per cent of appointments. More than 60 per cent of readers said they remained close to their wedding party friends and continued to have contact long after the wedding. A quarter said they talk daily and 4.5 per cent said their children were friends. The friendships were amongst the most important in their lives, with brides and grooms describing their relationship as "like my big sister," "a mate I can trust and lean on" and "the sister I never had." Very few relationships implode due to the stress of organising the wedding. Just 10 per cent said bad behaviour by stroppy bridesmaids killed the friendship and most of those friendships were terminated within a year of the wedding. The enduring nature of most wedding friendships highlights the importance of sharing core values, Relationships Australia expert Lyn Fletcher said. "Some friendships do have a use-by date if they are just based on sharing interests or doing things together that might change if you have kids or get married," she said. It is that core stuff that really keeps friends together. Those who part ways with their best man or maid of honour cited growing apart (41 per cent) and moving away (23.7 per cent) as the main reasons for the friendship ending. A small percentage said their friend and spouse "did not get on," straining the friendship.. Sarah Farrow and Michelle Nielsen both married in the same Watsons Bay church 14 years apart and each served as the other's bridesmaid. Ms Farrow, 28, said the bond she feels with her young aunt is extremely special. "She is very important to me," Ms Farrow said.