It was a seemingly innocent photo that sent fans into a frenzy – a beaming Terri Irwin holding her “trusty” video recorder in the back of a selfie with daughter, Bindi.
But now, a source close to the 56-year-old tells New Idea the happy snap is the tip of the iceberg of a simmering family feud!
WATCH: Terri Irwin reveals the promise she made to Steve before he died
According to the insider, Terri has spent the best part of the last decade recording and documenting key moments in the lives of her tight-knit family, which she intends to one day turn into a tell-all documentary.
“Terri has had a recorder permanently attached to her for years,” tells the source.
“She’s been documenting almost every moment of Bindi and Robert’s lives. She’ll likely have it in the birthing suite, too, when Bindi has her baby!”
While Terri is said to be excited by the thought of releasing never-before-seen footage of the family’s life, the insider notes there is one Irwin who could put a stop to it all!
“Steve’s father, Bob, would take real issue with this,” says the source. “He’s always had it in his head that Terri commercialised Australia Zoo and made it into this big theme park, which he felt was her selling out the family’s conservation mission.
“I doubt he’d be too happy about her turning private moments with his only son into a big production. Bob himself will be in some of those old movies – he would definitely not give over permission to be included.”
It’s no secret that following Steve’s tragic death in 2006, Bob, 81, fell out with Oregon-born Terri. This lead to his sudden resignation from Australia Zoo, the wildlife park he established in the ’70s.
Interestingly, it’s not just Bob who Terri has offside. Earlier this month, a fresh wave of criticism was thrown at the soon-to-be grandmother, with some fans suggesting Terri has been spending too much time with Bindi, 22, and her husband of almost a year, Chandler Powell, 24.
“Do Bindi and hubby ever go anywhere without mummy and brother?” read a comment on Instagram, while another sneered, “Come on, Terri, get a life and let your girl have some time off.”
Despite the recent backlash, the source says Terri will always be a close figure in her children’s lives and remains determined to collect more memories in the future.
“This love of capturing everything for posterity is why she has no issue being around them all the time. Terri has found a lot of comfort in watching videos of Steve when she’s sad,” explains the source.
“She has a treasure trove of VHS tapes – it’s all she has now that Steve’s gone,” continues the source, who insists Terri has not ruled out selling the tapes.
“Terri’s one step ahead of the game, as usual, and is pulling it all together for a really lush documentary. TV networks would write blank cheques for some of the stuff she has!”
“She loves how some big stars have had their own stories produced for Netflix and would like to give her story the same treatment – she knows it’s what fans would enjoy.”
For more, pick up a copy of New Idea. On sale now.
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