PIZZA EXPRESS' plans to shut 73 restaurants have received the go-ahead.

The move, which put 1,100 jobs at risk, has been approved by 89 per cent of its creditors who voted for the chain's Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) restructuring deal.

The firm needed a minimum of 75 per cent of creditors to vote in favour of the deal to give it the green light.

Last month, Pizza Express said the slump in revenue caused by the enforced closure of all restaurants during the pandemic, the cost of reopening, and the UK's uncertain economic future meant its rental costs were no longer sustainable.

The new deal will see it secure rent reductions.

Pizza Express said it currently has 355 restaurants open in the UK, with more than 30 due to reopen in the coming weeks.

Salisbury's branch on Blue Boar Row has also reopened and is not included in the list of sites earmarked for closure revealed last month.

Here is the full list:

  • Aberdeen, Belmont St
  • Aylesbury
  • Barnstaple, Three Tuns
  • Biggleswade
  • Billericay
  • Birmingham, Corporation St
  • Birmingham, Mailbox
  • Bournemouth, Post Office Rd
  • Bramhall
  • Bristol, Berkeley Sq
  • Bristol, Regent St
  • Bromsgrove
  • Bruton Place
  • Charlotte St
  • Chippenham
  • Dalton Park
  • Darlington
  • Dudley, Merry Hill
  • Earls Court, Earls Ct Rd
  • Edinburgh, Holyrood
  • Formby
  • Fulham Palace Road
  • Glasgow, Princes Square
  • Glossop
  • Gosforth
  • Grantham
  • Halifax
  • Hampstead
  • Hatch End
  • Hereford
  • Heswall
  • Ipswich, Lloyds Ave
  • Leeds, Crown St
  • Leeds, Horsforth
  • Ludlow
  • Lymington
  • Melton Mowbray
  • Midhurst
  • Milton Keynes, Hub
  • Moseley
  • New Brighton
  • Newcastle
  • Newport, Isle of Wight
  • Newport, South Wales
  • Northallerton
  • Nottingham, Goosegate
  • O2 Finchley
  • Orpington
  • Oxford, Oxford Castle
  • Poole
  • Port Solent
  • Ramsgate
  • Reading, St Mary’s Butts
  • Scarborough
  • Sheffield, Devonshire St
  • Sheffield The Moor
  • Shirley
  • Southport, Old Bank
  • Stafford
  • Staines
  • Stoke
  • Stourbridge
  • Sudbury
  • Torquay
  • Uxbridge
  • Wakefield
  • Walsall
  • Wapping
  • Wardour St
  • Weston-super-Mare
  • Whiteley Village
  • Whitstable
  • Wrexham

In a statement, Pizza Express said: "The successful vote unlocks the company's ability to actively address the challenges brought by Covid-19, securing over 9,000 jobs in the UK.

"The directors of Pizza Express thank its creditors for their support during this period and look forward to ongoing partnership as the hospitality industry recovers to growth."

The company, which is majority-owned by Chinese firm Hony Capital, also confirmed last month that it had hired advisers from Lazard to lead a sale process for the business.