Terri reveals Steve Irwin’s eerie premonition before death
Terri Irwin has revealed she's never overcome her grief of losing 'soulmate' Steve Irwin, after his shock death in September 2006.
In the first episode of the new season of ABC's Anh's Brush With Fame, the 53-year-old American-Australian burst into tears as she recalled the heartbreaking moment she found out that he had died.
The mother-of-two told host Anh Do she'll never move on from Steve and find another partner, saying: “I'm just lonely for Steve.”
“I always felt with Steve, if I hadn't married Steve I wouldn't have gotten married,” Terri said.
The pair tied the knot in the US in June 1992, four months after getting engaged.
She said when she first met Steve she wasn't even looking for love, but they had an instant connection.
“I wasn't even dating, I wasn't even looking. I was 27 years old and figured my life was going to be my work and met Steve and fell instantly in love,” she recalled.
Terri described Steve as her ‘soulmate' and said to this day, she isn't interested in meeting anyone new.
“I feel that we had that soulmate thing. And in the 10 years since, I haven't dated or even thought about it. Because I'm not afraid to be on my own,” she said.
“It's just really hard not having Steve. I'm just lonely for Steve if that makes sense.”
Terri also revealed how her late husband may have predicted his life was about to be 'cut short' in the months and weeks leading up to his shock death.
“You know he never thought he would have a long life. He just always kind of had this sense that his life would be cut short,” she told Anh.
“I remember him saying to me, 'I don’t think I am going to film anymore, I think I am just going to spend time with my kids’,” she said.
Although it’s been 11 years since Steve was killed by a stingray in a freak accident, Terri spoke about how she’s still grieving.
“Grief hits you at the most bizarre times. So I might be talking to biology students and it will remind me of Steve and I will burst into tears.”
She added: “You don't ever get over grief. It changes, but you never wake up one morning and go, 'Oh, I'm done with that.'
“That was the challenge in the journey after Steve died.”
Their children Bindi was eight at the time of her father's death, while Robert was just two years old.
Terri spoke about the last time she and the kids saw Steve, recalling it was when he was waving goodbye to them as they caught the plane to Tasmania.
“I felt so bad for Robert because he was too little,” Terri said.
“He was in his seat belt and fun police [referring to herself] didn't take the seat belt off so he could see his dad and wave goodbye. And that was the last time we saw him,” she said.
Terri said she arrived in Tasmania and was told to call a zoo manager, who told her about Steve's death.
“I just remember this� incredible sense of responsibility,” Terri said.
“This feeling of overwhelming grief but, it was like, ‘What do I do next?’ So I kind of collected my thoughts and then I had to go out to the car and tell Bindi and Robert, which was really hard.”
Terri cried as she remembered how she chose to drive herself and the children to the plane.
She said: “I drove myself, got in the plane and went home. But the thing I didn't expect or understand was just how it affected everyone.
“So we got back and it was dark, and we drive into the zoo and there's all this media out front of the zoo.
“And I thought, ‘You've done the story. It has been on the five o'clock news. Why are you still here?’ But then no one would have been more surprised than Steve at that, just outpouring of grief and love,” Terri said.