Bindi Irwin is the chosen one – heir apparent to father Steve’s wildlife juggernaut. With ambitions that reach as far as The Lodge, is the 11-year-old too young to be a brand, asks Bryce Corbett?
In the lush hinterland of Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, a mini-world inside a world is taking shape. It’s called Planet Bindi and Australia Zoo is its Ground Zero. It’s a parallel universe where everyone wears khaki, everyone talks in sound bites and the catchcry “Crikey!” bounces off the nearby Glasshouse Mountains. You know you’re getting close to the epicentre of this brave new world as the roadside billboards featuring its pre-teen princess become more and more frequent.
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Upon arrival, a spell in the world-famous Crocoseum, followed by a visit to the Australia Zoo gift shop, leaves the visitor in no doubt as to who is the heir apparent of the empire the Crocodile Hunter left behind. There are Bindi talking figurines, Bindi beach towels, Bindi sparkle wallets, Bindi backpacks, Bindi water bottles, a Bindi signature clothingrange and Bindi bendy dolls.
In the conservation- and wildlife-mad world that the late Steve Irwin created, it is the eldest child, Bindi Sue Irwin, who is the chosen one.
In the annals of corporate Australia, we’re seeing the creation of a whole new dynasty, albeit one built on conservation and crocodiles instead of mining or media. As a stroll around the Australia Zoo gift shop reveals, the current company management is betting on Bindi to lead Irwin Enterprises into the next decade. There’s the Jungle Girl TV series in which Bindi stars, the Bindi Wildlife Adventures series of books (the first four of which are released this month), the clothing range, plus a starring role in the Hollywood movie Free Willy 4: Escape From Pirates Cove, with Beau Bridges.
Outsiders have questioned whether it’s healthy for an 11-year-old to have all of this attention heaped upon her. Terri has come in for criticism for allowing her daughter to become the poster-child for a multi-million dollar business empire. The question being asked is: how fair is it to place the responsibility of securing the legacy of a hyperactive, millionaire, wildlife warrior father on the slender shoulders of his little girl?
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“Bindi and Robert are next in line,” explains Terri. “Steve and I always intended that, if they were interested, they would take the reins of the company. This is a family company, after all. Before Steve died, we drew up a 10-year business plan. I’m very proud of the fact that I am not just shooting in the dark with all of this, but actually realising Steve’s vision.”
As Terri sees it, the exposure she is giving Bindi to the worlds of wildlife conservation and business management are educations no school environment could ever provide. “I’m not imposing my ideas,” she says. “I’m simply teaching my kids to be goal-oriented and to follow through.
“As a parent, you want your kids to be good people and to have great lives. It’s about mentoring and getting them to understand things about life without burdening them. In other words, I’d like Bindi to understand a bit about the business and not just about the animals.
Yet, beneath the khaki and bravado, she is also a woman who lost her lover and life partner in the prime of his remarkable life. Her grief is not something she wears on her sleeve – after all, there are children to raise, a multi-million dollar business to run and a legacy to honour. Yet the grief is still there.
While Bindi is being photographed for The Weekly, Terri watches her daughter proudly and, apropos of nothing in particular, tells me how, on the night just gone, she let her kids watch Crocodile Dundee for the first time. “At first, they were horrified that the movie was about a crocodile poacher,” she says. “But then, after it was over, Robert looked at me and said, ‘That movie made me miss Daddy’. And it’s moments like those that just break my heart.”
For a brief second, her composure breaks and her eyes moisten. She stares at Bindi as she speaks. “Robert seems to be more demonstrative in his grief. Sometimes, after a shower, I’ll find he has written, ‘I miss Daddy’, in the steam on the mirror. Bindi tends to internalise her grief more. I suppose she is just dealing with it in her own way.”
Your say: What do you think of Bindi Irwin? Do you think she it too young to be doing so much? Share with us below.
Read more of Bryce Corbett’s exclusive interview with Bindi and Terri Irwin in the June Issue of The Weekly. Out now with Rebecca Gibney on the cover. Follow Bryce on Twitter, @BryceCorbett
