The sale of the Pizza Express restaurant chain has taken another twist.

TDI Capital and Capricorn Ventures have confirmed the setting up of their own bid vehicle - known as Gondola Express - to make a counteroffer to that made by Luke Johnson's buyout vehicle, Venice Bidder.

Gondola Express has said it is in financing talks with a group of banks, believed to be led by HBOS, and hopes to make a formal bid shortly.

Johnson's £263m offer was initially backed by Pizza Express's non-executive directors but they have since indicated that a higher bid would be considered. Gondola is reported to be prepared to pay between 380-390p per share for the company, against the 376p offered by Venice. Details: Type 'Pizza Express' into the www.leisureopportunities.co.uk search engine.