The Smurfs are celebrating their 50th birthday with a year-long party across Europe.

The festivities will be led by the family of Belgian cartoonist Pierre 'Peyo' Culliford, who invented the blue forest-dwelling creatures.

The Smurfs started life as the Schtroumpfs in a comic strip in 1958 and shot to worldwide fame after making their debut on US TV in the early 1980s.

Papa Smurf and Smurfette kicked off the party with some Smurfberry cake and sarsparilla juice in Brussels.

White Smurf statues will later be sent overnight to 20 European cities so residents will wake up to find thousands of them engaged in mundane activities such as queuing in the post office or waiting at a bus stop.

An exhibition telling the Smurf story is also planned, as well as new comic book collections, stamps and a 3-D animated movie scheduled for release next year.

A giant Celebrity Smurf will be sold at auction after being decorated by an as-yet-unnamed star, with profits going to the United Nations to help promote children's rights and education globally.