Customers have reported multiple closures across the UK, including Newcastle, Suffolk, Surrey and Berkshire - leading to outrage on social media as chicken lovers were left disappointed

The Colonel has finally revealed the shortages were down to a few teething problems with a new delivery company that was struggling to cope with 900 deliveries.

In a tweet, KFC UK said: “The chicken crossed the road, just not to our restaurants…

“We’ve brought a new delivery partner on board, but they’ve had a couple of teething problems – getting fresh chicken out to 900 restaurants across the country is pretty complex!

“We won’t compromise on quality, so no deliveries has meant some of our restaurants are closed, and others are operating a limited menu, or shortened hours.

“Shout out to our restaurant teams who are working flat out to get us back up and running again.”

The chicken chain is still looking into how many venues are affected but customers have reported multiple closures across the UK, including Newcastle, Suffolk, Surrey and Berkshire.

Fans of the fried chicken have been sharing their disappointment on Twitter.

One said: "Drove to two separate @KFC_UKI to find one had no chicken and one was closed. What even is my luck. Just want some fried chicken".

Another said: "As if kfc is closed coz they’ve run out of chicken."

A third added: "KFC in both Cheshire Oakes and Chester Greyhound Park are closed because... they're out of chicken."

A KFC spokesperson said: “We deliver fresh chicken to our restaurants, but we’re having a few hiccups with our delivery system at the moment.

"We’re really sorry for any inconvenience, and we’re working to have all our restaurants back up and running as soon as we can!”

Its not the first time that a chain has been in hot water over deliveries.

Last month, Wetherspoons was forced to pull steak from it's steak night menu following an investigation into its supplier by the Food Standards Agency.

In October, KFC fans branded the new Double Down burger a "disaster" after it failed to live to hype.

The breadless burger uses two pieces of chicken to the form the bun, with bacon, Monterey Jack cheese and BBQ sauce making up the filling.