Lea Michele celebrated Christmas early on Tuesday (11Dec12) after she received a gift from Barbra Streisand in the mail.

The Glee singer/actress, who has long hailed the Funny Girl star as her idol, was thrilled after unwrapping an autographed poster from the veteran entertainer's Back To Brooklyn tour.

Posting photos of her surprise on her Twitter.com page, Michele told fans, "Just got this in the mail!!!!!!" and added, "Is this real life!!??"

The hand-written message from Streisand reads, "For Lea - Would have liked to give you a hug! Next time... x x Barbra."