ALMOST 70 HMV stores are to close but Stevenage is not one of them.

The music and DVD retailer went into administration last month and this morning (Thursday) it was announced that 66 UK stores will shut as part of the process.

The shop in Stevenage town centre was not among the list of closures, which includes stores in St Albans and Luton.

No date has been set for the closures, which will affect 930 staff.

Deloitte administrator Nick Edwards said: “As part of our ongoing review of HMV’s financial position, we have now completed a review of the store portfolio and have identified 66 loss making stores for closure. This step has been taken in order to enhance the prospects of securing the business’ future as a going concern.

“We continue to receive strong support from staff and are extremely grateful to them for their commitment during an understandably difficult period. All other key stakeholders remain very supportive and I continue to be hopeful of securing a future for the restructured business.”