Robert Irwin was born on 1 December 2003 in Queensland to his adoring parents Steve and Terri Irwin. His first and middle (Clarence) names a tribute to his grandfathers, Bob Irwin and Clarence Raines. And his life – a tribute to his late father.
Tragically, Steve, the famous ‘Crocodile Hunter’, died after being pierced in the chest by a stingray barb in a freak accident. He was filming at the Great Barrier Reef in 2006 when it happened. And his only son Robert was just a few months shy of his third birthday.
Now 20, Robert continues to keep the conversation going about his father. In that way, he feels like he’s “getting little pieces of him back”.
STORIES OF STEVE
In a recent podcast, Mental as Anyone, Robert opened up: “Some people might not want any reminder of that person they’ve lost. For me personally, every time someone comes up to me in the street, it happens every single day, ‘Oh here’s this story about your dad’… I welcome that. I love it.
“When I see a picture of Dad or footage, I actually love having his presence around and living in Australia Zoo. He’s everywhere. The images and the pictures, the video and the sound, he’s still part of every day for me.
“Having lost someone at a very young age, I love getting little pieces of him back. That’s what it feels like.”
Reflecting on the short amount of time he had with his dad, Robert finds comfort in his loss through gratitude. He is so thankful to have had Steve, “the most amazing, loyal, dedicated, involved father figure that anyone could ever have”, for any amount of time.
He’s happy and proud to call him Dad.
“Everything he did was at 110 per cent with such precision and care and intelligence,” Robert said. “The building blocks of my life were… saturated by dad’s passion and enthusiasm. That’s something I carry with me forever.”
A BEAUTIFUL FATHER/SON BOND
Steve did indeed wear many hats. He was a zookeeper, educator, conservationist and TV star. And his passion for wildlife was palpable. But the one thing he loved even more was his family, including his young son. And like any good father and husband, it was important to Steve that they were always looked after.
In an old home video that was released on Robert’s 19th birthday, Steve made an emotional tribute to his son.
He was filmed saying: “I’ve lifted him up. And, you know, he’s a little bloke and put him on Terri’s chest. And we’re just stoked.
“At that very moment, I saw the light.”
He, almost with a knowing of his untimely passing, continued: “This is why I was put here. Because I could be dead tomorrow. So this little bloke is going to have to catch the crocs with Bindi.”
“I could be dead tomorrow. So this little bloke is going to have to catch the crocs with Bindi.”
‘Crocodile Hunter’ Steve Irwin
Naturally, Robert got emotional watching the video. As he wiped a tear from his eye, he said:
“It means the absolute world. I just think it’s such a privilege, personally and as a family, to continue the legacy of dad.
“He gave his life, quite literally, for wildlife conservation and to make the world a better place. I just hope he’d be proud.”
CROCODILE HUNTER 2.0
Robert is a lot like his dad. From his looks to his love of creatures and his life centred on family, there’s no doubt that Steve would be incredibly proud of his son.
Funny enough, as the podcast continued, Robert also admitted to another shocking element of his family. He said… they are not just boring, they’re so boring!
“What we do is absolutely nuts. Like you’re jumping on crocs. You’re saving wildlife. You’re doing this, you’re doing that. But in terms of the Irwin family dynamic we’re… just vanilla ice cream,” he said.
“We are so boring. But it’s great. It’s the way to be. There’s nothing wrong with having a boring family dynamic. In fact, that’s what you’re shooting for.
“For us, there’s never a dull moment. But there’s never this sense of drama. There’s never like the fighting and the bickering and this and that. It’s just this tight-knit family unit.”
Robert continues to keep Steve’s memory alive through his wildlife conservation work and role at Australia Zoo, where he and sister Bindi have helped fill their dad’s shoes. They both have inherited their dad’s love of nature and all of its creatures.
