In a statement the joint administrators Simon Thomas and Nick O’Reilly, from Moorfields Corporate Recovery, said: “Over the past few days our focus has been to assess the financial situation of Blockbuster in order to try and find a buyer for the business. As part of this process, we are today regretfully announcing the closure of 72 stores across the United Kingdom and the loss of 452 jobs. Since the acquisition by Gordon Brothers Europe in March 2013 the company has faced a period of poor trading performance across both rental and retail sales.