Those aren’t crocodile tears.
Access Hollywood has an exclusive sneak peek at the upcoming televised wedding of Bindi Irwin and Chandler Powell, which airs on Animal Planet, and it’s safe to say that their surprise wedding, which the couple pulled off in about 15 hours, was what dreams are made of and extremely emotional for the whole Irwin crew.
Chandler Powell, Bindi’s fiancé, opens the video and gushes about how quickly they pulled off their March 25 wedding day at their home and workplace, The Australia Zoo. “We just found out 15 hours ago,” Chandler shared, before adding that the whirlwind wedding planning was not getting in the way of his special day.
“Oh my goodness, today is already the best day of my life. I am marrying the girl of my dreams and I couldn’t be happier. I am on cloud nine right now,” Chandler shared.
And the feeling of excitement was echoed by Bindi’s brother, Robert Irwin, who couldn’t hold back the tears as he talked about his sister’s big day.
“Right now I’m absolutely feeling overjoyed,” he says in the clip. “I think for all of us, (we’re) just emotional, excited. It’s just such an incredibly special day. I’m overjoyed for Bindi and Chandler to be starting their married life today. The whole family’s gonna be there, and I can’t wait. I’m emotional already.”
“It’ll be good, I can’t believe she’s getting married,” the wildlife warrior said as he fought back tears. “Oh, what are you doing Robert? Pull yourself together! It’s happy tears though.”
Bindi and Chandler made a last-minute decision back in March to wed on March 25 at Australia Zoo without having their wedding party and full guest list attend as they had originally planned, due to rising concern about the coronavirus.
They couple may have been motivated by the strict coronavirus laws in Australia that were enacted last month. One of the laws required that weddings be limited to a select number of people, including only the couple, a celebrant and a witness. And while the couple said, “I Do” before the law went into place, they still decided to forgo having any guests as a precaution.
Bindi posted a photo on Instagram on March 25, 2020, confirming that she was officially a married lady.
“We held a small ceremony and I married my best friend. There are no words to describe the amount of love and light in my heart right now. We’ve planned this beautiful day for nearly a year and had to change everything, as we didn’t have guests at our wedding,” the capion reads.
She called the decision to change up her wedding plans, “difficult.”
“This was a very difficult decision but important to keep everyone safe. We wish all of our friends and family could have been there with us, however it’s lovely that we will be able to share photos and videos. Right now we’re encouraging the world to hold onto hope and love, which will carry us forward during this profound time in history,” she wrote.
The 21-year-old also shared some details about her big day, including how her mom Terri helped her get ready.
“Today we celebrated life and revelled in every beautiful moment we shared together in our Australia Zoo gardens. Mum helped me get ready, Robert walked me down the aisle, Chandler became my husband and together we lit a candle in Dad’s memory. We shared tears and smiles and love. Thankfully, since we all live at Australia Zoo as a family, we could be there for each other,” she stated. “To everyone reading this – stay safe, social distance and remember LOVE WINS!”
“Crikey! It’s The Irwins: Bindi’s Wedding” airs on Animal Planet Saturday, April 18 a 8PM ET/PT.
— Stephanie Swaim