Private equity firm Doughty Hanson has announced that it is to acquire cinema operator Vue Entertainment in a deal believed to be worth around £450m.

The business is currently owned by Cavenish Square Partners; hedge fund Och-Ziff and the existing management team, which includes CEO and founder Tim Richards. Under the terms of the deal, the management team will reinvest in the transaction, which is designed to help boost Vue's bid to roll-out digital projection and expand its operations.

Vue is currently the third largest cinema operator in the UK with 678 screens across 68 cinemas, along with two overseas sites - Dublin, Ireland, and SBC Faro Algarve, Portugal. Doughty Hanson senior principal Julian Huxtable said: "Vue Entertainment is a great company led by an exceptional, highly experienced management team which has created a strong market position for the company with an exciting future ahead.

"The company has achieved consistent financial performance and has succeeded in growing through the recent recession." Richards added: "Vue has come a long way since it was launched in 2003 and this next phase of our journey with Doughty Hanson as our new partner is going to be very exciting."