Micky Dolenz, the last living member of The Monkees, is suing the FBI for access to a secret dossier containing information on him and his former bandmates.

Dolenz was the drummer in the made-for-TV band that rocketed to fame in the 1960s, alongside Peter Tork, Mike Nesmith and Davy Jones. The group had hits including I’m a Believer and Last Train to Clarksville, and four No 1 albums in 1967, a record that remains unbeaten. They broke up in 1970.

That era saw the FBI’s then director J Edgar Hoover keep files on a catalogue of entertainment stars and other public figures, including Elvis and John Lennon.

A file on The Monkees was previously released in 2011. Although heavily redacted, it mentioned the possibility of “anti-US messages on the war in Vietnam” being relayed by the band during a 1967 concert tour.

Dolenz’s attorney, Mark Zaid, told Rolling Stone magazine he had told the former Monkees star it might be fun to see if the FBI had a file on the band, before realising that such a file did indeed exist.

Zaid submitted a freedom of information (FOI) request in June for access to the file in its entirety, plus any individual information on any of the bandmates. When the FBI did not comply within the required 20 working days of the request, Zaid sued on behalf of Dolenz.

As seen by Rolling Stone, it states: “This lawsuit is designed to obtain any records the FBI created and/or possesses on the Monkees as well as its individual members.”