Fans of One Direction have sent a barrage of abuse to the staff at GQ magazine through Twitter after a feature that will appear in the upcoming issue of the magazine.

The September issue will showcase a different cover for each member of the band but the release of a first look at the covers has left staff at the magazine fearing for their lives after a barrage of abuse and death threats from irate fans.

A spokesperson from the magazine said: "We weren't quite prepared for how many tweets we would receive in such a short space of time.

"While most were positive, and some less so, a few frankly had us fearing for our lives. Although the issue doesn't even go on sale until Thursday, a lot of the band's fan base took issue with certain cover lines, in particular one on Harry Styles' cover, 'He's Up All Night To Get Lucky'.

"It just goes to show: hell hath no fury like a Directioner scorned."

Some examples of the tweets that the magazine received include: “the GQ pictures make me want to stab myself in the uterus !!”, “@BritishGQ DO YOU REALIZE HOW MANY PEOPLE WANT TO CASTRATE THE PEOPLE WHO WORK FOR THIS SHITTY MAGAZINE?” and “GQ MAGAZINE CAN GO FUCK THEMSELVES WITH A CHAINSAW UP THEIR ASSHOLE TILL IT MUTILATES THEIR INSIDES”.