I guess everybody has heard about the village of Júzcar near Ronda having been painted blue for a promotional film about the Smurfs. Now the village, re-christened Pueblo Pitufo (Pitufo = Smurf in Spanish), is about to have a referendum to decide whether to leave the place blue or return it to white.

The village has been inundated with sightseers ever since it was repainted in an azure colour in the summer. Business is booming and tills are ringing. But are all the villagers happy about that? Has their peaceful rural idyll been spoiled?

Click here to see an interesting BBC film on this story:  news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/fast_track/9626507.stm

© Paul Whitelock

Tags:  Júzcar, Ronda, Smurf, blue village, Pueblo Pitufo, BBC, paul whitelock, www.a1-solutions-spain.com