Every so often, irony decides to rear an ugly head and throw out something which is both desperately sad and swimming in sick levels of humour. We've already looked at the unfortunate demises of Versalle and Moliere, which were ironic enough, but it was the death of a globally loved national treasure of Australia which really took the proverbial biscuit. Steve Irwin was arguably one of the most recognisable faces of televised conservation work, particularly in the field of wildlife in his home country. He was renowned for being so charismatic it felt like he was seconds away from somehow jumping through your TV screen, angry cobra in tow. Plus, he was pretty much the most Australian man that has ever lived, surpassing Crocodile Dundee in stereotype points, which is impressive, given that one of them was fictional. Irwin's tragic death occurred in September 2006 when rough weather delayed the filming of Ocean's Deadliest, which caused the presenter to make additional film work in shallow areas for his daughter's show, Bindi The Jungle Girl. As Irwin was filming a stingray, the creature became threatened, took a defensive action and lashed out. The animal's tail spine pierced Irwin's chest and heart, and although he received treatment on the journey back to shore, he was pronounced dead once the boat reached land. A tragically ironic death for a man who had dedicated his whole live to the preservation and protection of animals, particularly those unable to fend for themselves. Irwin is widely believed to be one of the only humans to have ever been killed by a stingray, and is at least the only one caught on film.
