More than 1,000 staff will lose their jobs at stricken casual dining chain TGI Fridays after a partial rescue by the financial backers of Byron Burgers and upmarket restaurant chain D&D London.

Hospitality investors Breal Capital and Calveton, who own brands such as Vinoteca and several breweries, have agreed to buy 51 of the American-themed restaurant chain’s sites, securing nearly 2,400 jobs.

However, 35 of TGI’s restaurants have been closed with immediate effect – resulting in 1,012 redundancies.

The TGI sites that will remain open include flagship restaurants in the Bluewater shopping centre, Trafford Centre, Liverpool One, Stratford and Leicester Square.

The partial rescue of TGI comes after Hostmore, the company that owns the rights to the brand in the UK, collapsed into administration last month after an aborted American expansion.

Daniel Smith, senior managing director of administrators Teneo, said: “The casual dining sector has been adversely impacted by well-publicised pressures on discretionary spend.

“This transaction with Breal Capital and Calveton UK preserves a significant proportion of jobs and will hopefully provide the business with the stability and support it needs to recover and grow.

“We thank all employees and other key stakeholders for their support at this difficult time.”

Julie McEwan, chief executive of TGI Fridays UK, said: “The news today marks the start of a positive future for our business following a very challenging period for the casual dining sector as a whole.”

He added: “We are devastated for our colleagues who will be leaving TGIs and thank them for their loyalty and contribution during their time with us.

“We are doing everything possible to retain our team and support those impacted.”

Hostmore was spun out of private equity trust Electra in November 2021 but within a year the company’s shares had shed 90pc of their value.

The business was delisted from London’s junior stock exchange just three years after its debut.

The company had previously planned a £180m reverse takeover of its larger US counterpart but that deal fell apart when it emerged the target business had lost the rights to TGI Fridays royalty payments.

The acquisition of the sites marks a potential break from convention for Breal Capital and Calveton.

Currently, most of the 30 or so sites owned by D&D London are upmarket individual restaurants such as Coq d’Argent and Paternoster Chop House, rather than chain brands like TGI Fridays.

A Breal and Calveton spokesman said: “We are delighted to be working with such an enthusiastic and committed management team to both modernise the business and capitalise on the heritage of this iconic brand.”

The first TGI Fridays restaurant was opened in the UK in 1986 by its then-owner Whitbread.