Back in 1972, Sir Paul McCartney’s 1961 Höfner 500/1 bass guitar, the first he ever bought, was stolen.

This historic Beatles instrument can be heard on the recordings of Love Me Do, She Loves You and Twist and Shout.

Now the long-lost instrument is the subject of a brand-new documentary, originally titled The Beatle and The Bass and now called McCartney: The Hunt for the Lost Bass.

The Arthur Cary-directed film, which airs on BBC Two this Saturday evening, is set to feature Macca himself as one of the talking heads.

McCartney said: “I think anything that’s nicked, you want back, especially if it has sentimental value. It just went off into the universe and it left us thinking, where did it go? There must be an answer.”

Commissioned for BBC Arts, “the film is a rock ‘n’ roll detective story featuring new interviews with Paul McCartney and many others who are personally connected to the bass. From Paul’s brother Mike McCartney, friend and artist Klaus Voormann, and roadies and collaborators such as Elvis Costello, to the fans, experts and journalists behind The Lost Bass Project, their memories are by turns funny, moving and surprising that help tell a compelling story about fandom, creativity, love, loss, memory and the transformative power of music.”

McCartney: The Hunt for the Lost Bass is on BBC Two this Saturday at 8:45pm and will be followed by Paul McCartney at the BBC and Sing the Beatles.