Pizza Express has confirmed it is closing 73 branches across the country - including two in Kent.

The Italian restaurant giant is taking drastic action to help improve its performance during "difficult market conditions caused by the Covid-19 crisis and the effect of lockdown measures upon its restaurants".

The firm was initially tight-lipped over reports it was set to shut branches.

But following the huge disruption the pandemic caused to the UK's casual dining sector, the firm has now announced the closure of 73 restaurants, which will affect 1,100 members of staff.

Its branches in Albert Street, Whitstable, and in Harbour Parade, Ramgsate will be among those to close - while on the outskirts of London, its Orpington restaurant will is also shut.

But Pizza Express' other Kent restaurants including those in Canterbury, Ashford, Tunbridge Wells and Rochester are set to remain open.

It's branch in Maidstone has already been closed due to "unsustainable" refurbishment costs in a decision the chain said was unrelated to the wider restructure.

The closures are being made as part of a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) the firm has launched, which aims to improve its performance.

Zoe Bowley, managing director of Pizza Express UK and Ireland, said: "Unfortunately, the impact of the global pandemic has meant that we have had to make some incredibly tough decisions to safeguard PizzaExpress for the long term.

"We have confirmed that 73 of our pizzerias are proposed to close permanently.

"In most cases, there is another Pizza Express nearby, either already open or reopening soon, to welcome our customers.

"Our focus is on our people whose jobs are impacted and we will be doing everything we can either to redeploy them or to support them in finding roles elsewhere.

"Hard as this process is, it will protect the jobs of over 9,000 of our colleagues and provide a strong footing for Pizza Express to meet future challenges and opportunities.”

The full list of Pizza Express branches set to close:

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

Founded by Peter Boizot in Soho in 1965, Pizza Express now has more than 600 restaurants globally, including 454 pizzerias in the UK.

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