'I still have the empty feeling': Cory Monteith's father Joe opens up ahead of the first anniversary of Glee star's tragic death

Published: 19:13 EST, 12 July 2014 | Updated: 04:28 EST, 13 July 2014

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It's a year since the tragic drugs death of Glee star Cory Monteith.

Now Cory Monteith’s father Joe has talked about his loss ahead of Sunday's anniversary.

He told Entertainment Tonight Canada's Rick Campanelli in an interview: 'I still miss him very much and I still have the empty feeling inside.

A father remembers: One year since the death of Cory Monteith, his father Joe talked about his loss to ET Canada's Rick Campanelli on Saturday

'I still miss him': However Jo said he wasn't invited to his son's funeral because he was estranged from the 31-year-old, who died from a toxic combination of heroin and alcohol

'Cory was a likeable young man and if he was in the room, you'd be smiling. He enjoyed life. That's why I was so shocked about the outcome of everything.'

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The actor, who played Finn Hudson in the Fox series, died of a toxic combination of heroin and alcohol while staying at the Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel in Vancouver, Canada on July 13, 2013. He was just 31.

The handsome actor had been in and out of rehab since he was 19 and had been at a facility earlier that year.

Losing battle: The handsome actor, pictured at the 2010 People's Choice Awards in Los Angeles, had fought his drug addiction since his teenage years

Joe was not invited to the funeral because he was estranged from his son. 'I didn't get to go to his viewing, which, it would have meant a lot,' he told Rick.

He added that he had been contacted by his ex-wife Ann since the memorial service.

Talking about Lea Michele, 27, Cory's real-life and onscreen girlfriend, Joe said: 'She's a beautiful young woman, she's just getting to the top of her career and I don't expect her to go out and do it alone.

'She should enjoy life. She had a good time when she was with Cory, from what I understand, but life's gotta go on.'

Pair of Gleeks: Lea Michele played Rachel, the love interest of Cory's character, Finn, and their romance continued offscreen

The actress, who plays Rachel Berry on the high school musical show, was devastated by Cory's death but has recently begun dating model Matthew Paetz.

The duo met on the set of Michele's On My Way music video shoot a few months ago.

'She waited a long time before getting serious again and she likes him a lot,' a source recently told E! News.

New love: After almost a year of mourning, the 27-year-old brunette has begun dating model Matthew Paetz, pictured hiking in Los Angeles on June 27

Meanwhile, a fresh tragedy hit Glee this week when 28-year-old actress Becca Tobin's businessman boyfriend Matthew Bendik, 35 was found dead in a Philadelphia hotel room on Thursday.

An autopsy was conducted, but the cause of death still remains unclear. The authorities said there was no evidence he committed suicide and that no drugs, medication or weapons were found at the scene, TMZ reported.