Crikey - What an Adventure! (2007)
Steve's family and friends remember him in this tribute special that premiered immediately after "Ocean's Deadliest". Also features archive footage from the show.
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TVTranscript
00:00I just want to say something from the heart. Sorry for getting all emotional on you, but
00:06I tell you what, this has been the best month of my life. Fatigued, I might come up here
00:10busted up. I come up here with a broken neck, and the first week was just hell, you know.
00:15All I could do was walk around, and you guys were really good, you know. You went out in
00:19front of me and made sure I didn't have to lift anything too heavy, and jumped on the
00:23crocs like just absolute legends, and I was able to relax, and I was able to be a general,
00:29and I would hope that I was able to give you much bigger and better education this
00:33year, because by crikey, I felt good. I felt good teaching and giving this year, rather
00:39than trying to do everything myself, and this is definitely the best month of my life. I
00:44have had the best time. I've relaxed. My neck's still giving me grief, but you know what?
00:50It pales in comparison to the goodness that I've got in my heart from this month, and
00:55by crikey, there's not a team on earth that I'd sooner be with. You people and my family
01:00together, we are great, and with this camera here, we're going to show the world exactly
01:05what we do and how proud we are doing it, and by jingo, it brings me to tears for you
01:10guys to jump on that croc and feel the honour and the respect that goes with it. What we've
01:14got here is Professor Franklin, a genius, a scientific genius. We've got Joan Staten,
01:21an absolute genius on the other side of the camera, and you're very lucky because now
01:27you get to see it on telly, so good luck to you.
02:21It was constant adventure. It was doing everything right now. It was doing things that I never
02:30thought I'd be able to do. You guys are on back legs? Yeah. Okay, great. All right, it
02:35sounds like you've got a plan. We've got a plan, but you need to say when to jump. Yeah,
02:40no worries, you've got it. He just brought this larger-than-life appreciation of everything
02:46into my world. Back leg up. You know, some people can put on some enthusiasm for an hour
02:57or two hours or maybe a day, but he was like it every day. Sometimes you go, he's got to
03:03burn out in a minute. You know, he's got to slow up, but he didn't. Little rear chick.
03:07You all right, little buddy? You all right, little buddy? This drop-dead gorgeous little
03:11one here is a whettle. Look at you. Do you see that? Straight in. That's what makes these
03:21sharks so dangerous. Woo! How's that? Bull sharks. Straight at me. Wham-o. I guess the
03:28greatest misconception that people have about me, which is very minor, rarely, rarely do
03:34I hear it, but I'll hear it once, maybe twice a year, and that is the question, is he really
03:41like that? Mate, what you see is what you get. Yes, I'm really like that. When you're
03:49actually talking about Steve, it's hard to separate passion, drive, professionalism.
03:59Steve had them all, and they were all tied together. I would describe my dad by really
04:05passionate for what he does, by saving animals, and have lots of fun with me. We have so much
04:10fun together. One of the things that people don't really know about Steve is the fact
04:15that he was a very loyal person. Steve and I had a great business relationship, a great
04:19working relationship, and a great friendship based on loyalty and trust. We had a great
04:26bond that was a magic mix for making television and getting a message out. Go! Woo! That is
04:35where the money's at. Often he'd look at footage and stuff and go, oh, boy, that guy's through
04:39the roof, but he knew that people really, really loved that side of him, that side of
04:44his personality. This place is just magic. The big black clouds, the threat of rain,
04:51lightning, and the largest mammal on the continent. Crikey, I hope it rains.
05:05When I first met Steve, I thought, okay, well, he's going to have this entourage of helpers
05:08with him. They'll put his tent up, or he'll have a luxury caravan. There is no way that
05:17Steve would have a luxury caravan in the bush. We had our outdoor toilet, and Steve's responsibility
05:23was to empty that bucket every day. There was no trappings of wealth or any kind of
05:29celebrity ego with Steve in the bush. I think people may be surprised at just how disciplined
05:35Steve would be. A lot of times he'd be up two, three o'clock in the morning as a routine.
05:40He would plan wildlife documentaries. He was a fantastic photographer. Some of the filming that
05:46went on was just too dangerous for the cinematographer to do himself, so Steve would pick
05:51up the camera and step in. From the moment he got up to the moment he got to bed, that was it.
05:56A half mile an hour, enthusiastic. If he had to move a log, he moved it quicker, harder, faster
06:02than anyone. It was a competition. Steve didn't go off to the golf course and then come back and
06:08film wildlife documentaries. It was definitely his life, and he felt that everyone to varying degrees
06:15should incorporate wildlife conservation into their life. Otherwise, the world doesn't have a chance.
06:22Wow, I'd take up golf if I knew I was going to get this close to apex predators every time I hit
06:28a couple of rounds over on the Mexican golf courses. This is fantastic.
06:33Oh, he sliced it. I don't know what that means, but it went way over there.
06:43To see him working with crocodiles was something I'll never forget.
06:47You could feel the power, feel the adrenaline pumping through his veins.
06:51He was on fire. He gave it his all, even when he was injured in the line of duty.
06:58I go, croc goes.
07:04Probably very few people know this, but the last three or four years, he was in pain 100% of the
07:11time. He was an amazing man. I have never seen anybody be able to do what he did with the amount
07:18of pain that he was suffering. And out of all the things that this accident has brought to me,
07:28is the fact that Steve is no longer in any pain. And that is something I feel really,
07:33really good about. I've dealt with all sorts of wildlife, but the animals that make me
07:38most scared, most timid is parrots. I have to, you know, Australia like is the land of the parrot.
07:45We've got hundreds of different species and I have to rescue them and by crikey, they hurt.
07:49And I'm always a little tense when I got to go in and help a parrot.
07:58Gored, gouged, bruised, battered and bitten by nearly every animal that we encountered.
08:06He seemed to get some satisfaction out of the fact that the animal had got the better of him,
08:11that that actually won. My dad was really good with wildlife because he would never hurt them
08:17while he was wrangling them. He always used to be really nice and calm, cool and collected.
08:23He was really good with animals. He just loved all things that could kill you,
08:29snakes, crocodiles, sharks, gorillas, anything that could rip your arms off or bite you. Steve
08:35absolutely loved them the most. He wanted to save them. He wanted the world to protect all
08:39the apex predators. That was one of his main missions in life. I absolutely live for my work.
08:45I'm very passionate, very enthusiastic. My whole life revolves around conservation. That is my
08:50work. That is my life. And I'll die doing that. He also had a really soft spot for saving the
08:58cute and cuddlies of the world as well, like koalas. He was so passionate about koalas that
09:03he set up a wildlife hospital at Australia Zoo just to help them. And he also loved whales.
09:08They were in his heart. He wanted to save them. He had an affinity and a sixth sense with animals.
09:15I've seen him go in with gorillas and the gorillas
09:18just wanted to come play with him. I have a go at this. It's the highlight of my life.
09:25He's sticking his tongue right in my mouth.
09:53You are so bad.
09:55He believed in conservation, that he wanted to educate people. But to do that,
10:02he required knowledge and he wanted new knowledge so that he could present that to the world
10:06and hopefully capture the imaginations from all specters of life.
10:11We made it just in time. This is the planned drop-off point to see where big male crocs go
10:17when no one's watching. It's the biggest tracking research project of its kind in the world. And
10:23after four months, scientists are amazed at how far this one croc swam and even travelled overland
10:30to find his way home. We're getting an awful lot of information for daddy's research crocodile trips.
10:38Rescuing wildlife for the purposes of conservation, that's what I'm about.
10:45One of his best friends in the whole world was Wes Mannion. He and Wes were more than mates.
10:50They were more than best friends. They were more like brothers. They finished feeding
10:54and so now they just get a little bit itchy. Pretty soon, they're gonna have to check each
10:58other out. Half the size of that one. It's all part of the grooming process. And let's face it,
11:04Wes is me mate. He and Wes first met in 1985 when Wes was a kid and wanted to work with wildlife.
11:12This little fella used to follow me around and I'd turn around and I'd nearly stand on him.
11:18And this would go on until I got really, really grumpy. And then Wes and Steve
11:24grew closer and closer together. It was an absolute pleasure to watch them actually.
11:30And boy, did they get up to some mischief together. I can remember being out on a couple of trips with
11:35the two of them, which was a big mistake. They were both naughty little boys.
11:41Steve gained great strength from his marriage. Terry was probably his rock.
11:51From the moment I met Terry, I realized that their match was one that was made in heaven.
11:56Check it out. Steve-O's flat out after a big day of filming. You'll notice this cloud. It
12:01means we haven't shot anything yet today, but the poor boy's exhausted.
12:06He's had Terry there to prop him up and support him the whole way.
12:10The world that Steve has opened up to me to do things that I never thought I could do
12:14has just been fantastic. When Bindi came along, it made some big changes.
12:23The day she was born, he realized that it was probably the most important part of his life.
12:28I don't think he realized just what an amazing girl she was going to be. And Bindi especially
12:34took him everywhere he went. I've never seen him happier except when he's with his kids with
12:42wildlife. You'll have to call action. And action. Okay. G'day, I'm Steve Irwin and we're here with
12:48the Bull Ants. This is Bindi Irwin. Hi. Yeah. One of the greatest honors while we're on this movie
12:55shoot is working with my daughter and the wildlife that's around here. It is, isn't it? Now everybody
13:02knows Bull Ants bite and they bite hard. Yep. But I'm trying to teach Bindi to be a wildlife warrior
13:09and love all wildlife. Do you love Bull Ants? Yep. Are they your friends? Yep. Do they bite
13:14you a little bit? Yeah. But does it matter? No. Why do they bite? Because they're scared.
13:23That's right. Bull Ants bite when they're scared and they're scared that we might wreck their house.
13:28And if I put my hand, I get some ants too. Are they coming on you?
13:35Oh, that one's on you. Did he bite you? Yeah.
13:48Boyle seems to be in the genes. I'll watch her when she would watch Steve with animals
13:54and she'd just study him and want to be like him. This little grasshopper is called a Texas
14:00Lover and it tastes horrible, just horrible. I learned all of these things from my dad. He,
14:07I looked up to him. He was like this bright shining light to me. He was just amazing. Bindi
14:13has been born into an incredible world. She loves singing and dancing. She has the X Factor that
14:18Steve had, well and truly. I find it a tremendous gift to be able to nurture what you see your
14:27children wanting to do and to be able to help them with that. So how blessed am I that I have
14:33Australia Zoo and a Crocoseum and if she wants to sing and dance, go girl, she can do it.
14:48One of the reasons we really got on so well because we've got the same sense of humor at
14:59times, he was always in it for a laugh. Listen Steve, I hear you. I mean if it's up to me, right,
15:04we'd have the crocodile hunting 24-7. Exactly. Every single time I do my boot laces up,
15:10I'm scaring death right in the eyes. How many baseballers are doing that? I'm with you,
15:15that's for sure. Crikey, stand back John, have a go at the size of this beauty.
15:22Isn't he gorgeous? I'll have him secured any minute now. I'll catch up with you later. John,
15:30give us a hand mate. One day, which was particularly funny, you're going to be filming
15:35with a sheik from the Middle East who wants to come in and contribute a large amount of money.
15:42Well, as the story unfolds, the sheik decides that he wants our camels.
15:47His highness is asking about if you want to sell them. He's ready to pay whatever.
15:53Oh no, no, no, these are my friends. I'm so sorry. His highness, I can feel him, he's very
15:59offended about seeing these camels here and he's very worried about them, you know, because it's
16:06some kind of an anthem for them, you know. Are you sure you are taking care?
16:13Steve doesn't want to part with these camels.
16:17So where we can, how can we settle them? His highness is saying what we're going to do now,
16:23we're going to take the camel with us and we're going to leave the woman here as a down payment.
16:29Yes, and we love them too, and we'll talk about the price later on. Okay,
16:33oh good deal. Mission accomplished. Prince Bogus and his fake entourage walk away with the camels
16:39and both Steve, Wes and all the rest of us have been suckered right in, big time.
16:44Steve had many great achievements. The one that I feel was one of his greatest was the
17:06Crocoseum. He was told by experts that he couldn't do it. The amazing thing was that
17:13Steve designed this all in his head with the idea that he could get crocodiles to come from
17:19enclosures out the back through a series of waterways into the Crocoseum and then back
17:25out again and no one in the world had ever done this before. There was no model to design this
17:30after and while crocodiles really can't be trained, they can't be tamed, they can be somewhat conditioned.
17:43No movement there, just be careful.
17:48There were a few things that were just for Steve that were really important.
17:53I think probably the most important would have been his surfboards and he loved surfing and it
17:59was a real blessing when Bindi finally became old enough to learn to surf. He used to teach me to
18:05surf. We used to go out and surf together and he used to give me lots of tips.
18:12I got up on the board quite a few times but he was always the champion. I looked up to him.
18:21To honour Steve's life and legacy, we held a memorial service in the Crocoseum.
18:26It was a tribute that touched millions of hearts around the world and particularly
18:30the words from the heart of an eight-year-old little girl.
18:39My daddy was my hero. He was always there for me when I needed him. He listened to me and taught
18:44me so many things. Daddy made this place his whole life. Now it's our turn to help daddy. Thank you.
18:51He was a great scientist. A couple of months before we went on the August field trip, I put
19:01in the paperwork at the University of Queensland an application to make Steve an honorary professor.
19:07I knew it had been approved and throughout the month of August I kept it from him. I didn't tell
19:16him. I spent maybe 20 years teaching him all the things that I knew and then he spent the next 20
19:27years teaching me how to do things better. I think I learned a lot of things from my dad about
19:34wildlife and keeping this planet safe. One is that you should never hurt or fear from animals
19:42because they're just nature's creatures from a tiny little ant to this great white shark.
19:48They're all individual and they're kind of like us. They have the same features but
19:54they're trapped inside an animal's body. Baby Bob will grow up in his dad's footsteps.
20:01He was Steve's own special little crocodile hunter. Hey, thank you for helping me. You're a good help
20:07and maybe next croc you could help me with the knot and do some good croc knots with the ropes.
20:13I can. Good, good, good. How's your tummy going? Has it been behaving itself? Yeah. Oh good, that's good.
20:22All right, will we head off now? Yeah. Let's go set some more traps and catch more crocs tomorrow, will we?
20:28Okay.
20:33The future for the Irwin family is bright and promising. They have the strength and courage
20:37that comes from Steve's passion and enthusiasm. His goals and dreams will be conquered by their
20:42sheer determination that is the legacy of being an Irwin. The family of a fallen hero the world
20:48will always remember and whose heart still beats at Australia Zoo. When people come into the zoo
20:54they can feel, feel Steve and he courses through your veins, your arteries. It's a beautiful thing.
20:59I think Steve's major achievements were giving people the inspiration to know that one person
21:06can make a huge difference and now we have to hang in there and keep it going and never forget.
21:12I have a message for my fans. Whatever you want to do in this world, it is achievable. The most
21:19important thing that I found that perhaps you could use is be passionate and enthusiastic
21:26in the direction that you choose in life and you'll be a winner.