Glee's Cory Monteith Tribute Episode – Are You Ready For The First Look?

Glee creator Ryan Murphy has released a promo photo for the tribute episode honouring late star Cory Monteith

Glee creator Ryan Murphy has released a promo photo for the tribute episode honouring late star Cory Monteith.

The show's creator posted a picture to his Twitter account on Thursday, captioned: 'Glee First Look,' featuring a black-and-white photo of Cory Monteith's face and the tagline: 'The hardest word to say is "goodbye."'

The tribute episode, set to air on Fox in the US on 10 October as the third episode of the hit show's fifth series, is going to be an emotional one, as the cast says goodbye to the 31-year-old actor who died tragically of a drug and alcohol overdose in July, as well as to his Glee alter-ego, Finn Hudson.

'You will cry from beginning to end,' one insider told E! News, describing the episode as 'gut-wrenching,' while another source said: 'I cried as I read it, on every page.'

The upcoming episode will take place in Lima, Ohio and begin with the news of Finn's death (no cause of death will be revealed), while the rest of the episode will follow each of the characters remembering their lost friend as they grieve.

Lea Michele, Cory's on and off-screen girlfriend, will only appear in the final act of the episode.

Glee star Jane Lynch, who praised the episode as being the 'most beautiful thing' when she read the script, honoured Cory at the Emmy Awards last weekend, calling him a 'beautiful soul.'

'To a generation that loved Cory so, please know that this gifted and wonderful young man was worthy of your love.

'And if you were lucky enough to know Cory as we did and witnessed firsthand Cory's goofy, breezy sense of humour, his natural instinct for inclusiveness and his unbridled sense of generosity, day in and day out, I promise, you would have loved him even more,' Lynch said.

Jane Lynch pays tribute to 'beautiful soul' Cory Monteith at Emmy Awards

Ryan Murphy on Glee's tribute episode

Cory Monteith remembered in emotional Glee tribute video

Got a tablet? You can now download Marie Claire magazine straight to your iPad, Kindle (just search the store for 'marie claire magazine'), Nook or Google Nexus.