'Queer Eye' to shut after fifth season

NEW YORK, Sept. 13 (UPI) -- The upcoming fifth season of the ground-breaking U.S. reality TV show, "Queer Eye," will be its last, Bravo has said in a statement.

The Emmy Award-winning series, starring Ted Allen, Kyan Douglas, Thom Filicia, Carson Kressley and Jai Rodriguez, concludes its four-year run with 10 all-new episodes, starting Oct. 2 with a special premiere, including a "Straight Guy Pageant," presented by soap star Susan Lucci.

The premiere will be followed by an all-new episode, which introduces the world to Eric, a small-town Denver boy who enlists the help of the "Queer Eye" guys to prepare for his first meeting with New Yorker Tracie after they connected on Match.com.

Since it premiered, the show has helped straight men everywhere improve their grooming, clothing choices, relationships and appreciation for culture.

"'Queer Eye' refashioned Bravo when it premiered four years ago, and the Fab Five's areas of expertise are now the tentpoles of Bravo's programming: fashion, food, beauty, design and pop culture," said Frances Berwick, Bravo's executive vice president of programming and production. "The show continues to combine a rare mix of emotional stories of personal growth, with relevant information on style, cooking and culture, and a liberal dose of humor."