Steve Irwin's father 'sad and angry' that cameraman disclosed the grisly final moments of his son’s life and his last words

Steve Irwin was subjected to a particularly brutal death.

The daring but endearing Australian wildlife expert was poisoned after being stabbed by a stingray’s foot-long barb “thousands of times” as he and cameraman Justin Lyons attempted to get a shot of the creature in its natural habitat.

Lyons poke publicly about his death for the first time when he appeared on an episode of Network Ten's Studio 10 programme last March, disclosing the gruesome details of Irwin’s final moments and even telling the host what his final words were.

But a year later, Irwin’s father Bob Irwin has admitted he was less than impressed with Lyons for publicising the details of the tragic event.

Appearing in a special about his son for Australian Story, he said: “I personally felt very sad and, to a degree, angry about what Justin had to say.

“For a lot of people trying to get on with their lives without Steve, it wasn't something that helped by any means.”

Another member of Irwin’s Croc Team, Briano Coulter, was also with him when he died. He’d previously offered to go through the bare bones of Irwin’s death with his father and said he maintained a sense of respect for the grieving family members.

“Not long after we lost Steve, I spoke to Bob and said if he ever wanted me to discuss the circumstances around Steve's passing I would be more than happy to discuss that with him,” Coulter said. “Because I thought for me, personally, if I lost my daughter or my wife or someone very, very close to me like that, for my own peace of mind I would probably want to know the circumstances,” he said. “Bob thanked me and he said that he wouldn't like to have that discussion.”

Speaking about her father’s death last year, Bindi Irwin told People magazine that the assertion of time being a heal is “the biggest lie you will ever here”.