Pregnant Bindi Irwin and her husband, Chandler Powell, have been openly gushing on social media about their soon-to-arrive baby girl. However, one family member who is unlikely to be in the loop is Bindi’s grandfather, Bob Irwin, Snr.
WATCH: Bindi Irwin breaks down over surprise photo of dad Steve
The 81-year-old father of the late Steve Irwin has been estranged from the family following his son’s untimely death. Whispers surfaced of a family feud between Bob and his daughter-in-law Terri in the months following Steve’s passing, ultimately culminating in Bob’s resignation from Australia Zoo.
Since then, Bindi, 22, along with her mother and brother, Robert have chosen to shun their elderly relative and exclude him from their lives.
However, a source reveals to New Idea that Bindi’s impending baby arrival has left Bob yearning to once again be involved with the family.
“He misses Bindi and Robert and now he’s having to contend with the fact that she’s a grown, married woman with a baby on the way – a great-granddaughter,” says the source.
“He knows in his bones he will never be allowed to meet [the baby]. Only over Terri’s dead body would that happen,” the source adds.
The source reveals that despite the decades-long silence between Bob and the Irwins, he remains hopeful that he might one day be welcomed back into the fold.
“Still, he can’t help but harbour a little hope Bindi will one day decide – hopefully before it’s too late – to end the blanket ban on his presence in their lives,” the source explains.
“He feels Bindi’s child should meet her paternal great- grandfather. After all, he is the man who started the Australia Zoo and the Crocodile Hunter legacy, that Bindi and Chandler’s little girl will one day inherit.”
“He hopes Bindi will take pity on a very old man,” adds the source.
Meanwhile, the source explains that the octogenarian has been living a solitary existence in the 12 years since his falling out with the famous family.
“Poor old Bob is basically a recluse these days. The only time he leaves Camp Chilli is for doctor appointments and the like,” the source says.
“This means he has a lot of time to reminisce on his incredible life – but also fret over how things have gone wrong for him ever since he lost Steve,” the source adds.
Bob founded Australia Zoo (then known as the Beerwah Reptile Park in 1970, then rebranded as Queensland Reptile and Fauna Park in the 1980s). But the glory days came in the 1990s when he handed over the reins to Steve, who changed the name and took it to global notoriety on the TV documentary series, The Crocodile Hunter.
In those heydays, Steve and his father were an unstoppable force – and the source suggests that Bob still feels spiritually connected to his son.
“His only comfort these days is the daily conversations he has with Steve. He talks to him all the time,” says the source. “It’s the only way he’s able to feel connected to his family in some way.”
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