Rachael Ray does not like snakes.

So, for Bindi Irwin to convince her to actually touch one on today's 'Rachael Ray' (weekdays, syndicated) was a minor miracle. Irwin, along with her mother Terri and Jarod "The Animal Guy," brought a baby Woma python out on the set to show the crowd -- and for Ray to touch.

Ray balked, saying there was no way she would touch it. They make her see spots, she said. But Irwin was persistent and tried to clear up a myth or two about snakes: "A lot of people think that snakes are slimy and sticky, but they're really not. They can't sweat. So they're beautiful and smooth and soft."

Ray still wasn't buying it, but she eventually walked to the tail end of the snake, giving it a wide birth, and brushed it briefly with a finger. To her credit, she tried it twice. Her verdict? "She feels like chicken," she said.

Australian police are doing everything possible to ensure that the video tape of Steve Irwin's death never becomes public. The officers who investigated the Crocodile Hunter's death have destroyed all copies of the video tape that shows him being stabbed in the chest by a stingray barb and dying. The original copy of the video has been handed over to Terri Irwin, Steve's widow. According to the Australian press, Terri plans to destroy the original copy because no one should ever have to see it.

I hope that this truly is the end of the videotape and I hope that the Australian police really did keep the tape tightly secure during their entire investigation. When I first heard that Irwin's death was filmed, I pictured it showing up on YouTube (like the Saddam hanging). Terri Irwin is right: that's not something that the public needs to see.

Once again, ABC news woman Barbara Walters is hosting her list of The 10 Most Fascinating People of 2006. As usual, she's picking public figures from entertainment, politics, sports and business. ABC has released the names of six people on her list, including Patrick Dempsey (Grey's Anatomy), Anna Wintour, Andre Agassi, John Ramsey (JonBenet's father), televangelist Joel Osteen, and Terri Irwin. Last year's list included Jamie Foxx, Dakota Fanning, Teri Hatcher, Camilla Parker-Bowles, and Tom Cruise- who totally wigged out in 2005. The special airs on Tuesday, December 12th at 10 pm.

Whether you like her or not, I think Rachael Ray deserves to be on this year's list. 2006 was definitely her year. To that, I'd add Barack Obama (who should've been on her list in 2004) or Nancy Pelosi. And, probably Angelina Jolie.

Who else should make this list?

As if Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin's death hasn't raised enough ire thanks to the "too soon to joke" camp versus Bill Maher and South Park, Irwin's former BBC boss has added more fuel to the fire.

Executive producer of BBC's Planet Earth Alastair Fothergill must have had it with the Irwin-as-saint treatment when he stated to the press that he didn't have much sympathy for Irwin because he believed Irwin was more interested in his own stardom than animals.

Terri Irwin sure is an admirable person. She recently gave an interview to Barbara Walters, saying that the footage of her husband's death will never make air. She hasn't seen the video herself, which shows Steve Irwin being stabbed in the heart by the barb of a stingray while filming a television special along Australia's Great Barrier Reef. Irwin tells Walters that no one should have to see it and I couldn't agree more.

In the interview, which airs tonight on ABC, Irwin also talks about how she and her family are handling their grief and what she was doing when she learned of her husband's death. It airs at 10 pm on 20/20.