8-K

                       SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                             Washington, D.C. 20549

                                    FORM 8-K

                CURRENT REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF
                       THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

                                 Date of Report
              (Date of earliest event reported): December 19, 2003

                           ARIAD PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.
                           --------------------------
             (Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter)


     Delaware                      0-21696                     22-3106987
(State or Other Jurisdiction   (Commission File Number)    (I.R.S. Employer
of Incorporation)                                         Identification No.)


                              26 LANDSDOWNE STREET
                         CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS 02139
              (Address of principal executive offices and zip code)


               Registrant's telephone number, including area code:
                                 (617) 494-0400























ITEM 5.    OTHER EVENTS

           On December 19, 2003, the Registrant disseminated a Press Release
           announcing that it has filed a shelf registration statement with the
           Securities and Exchange Commission for the issuance of up to 7
           million shares of common stock. The Company has no immediate plans to
           offer or sell any shares of its common stock.

           The information contained in the Press Release dated December 19,
           2003, is incorporated herein by reference and attached as Exhibit
           99.1 hereto.

ITEM 7.    FINANCIAL STATEMENTS, PRO FORMA FINANCIAL INFORMATION AND EXHIBITS.


           (c)    Exhibits.

                  99.1   The Registrant's Press Release dated December 19, 2003.



                                   SIGNATURES

         Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned thereunto duly authorized.


                               ARIAD PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.



                               By:    /s/ Edward M. Fitzgerald
                                      ------------------------
                                      Edward M. Fitzgerald
                                      Senior Vice President and
                                        Chief Financial Officer


Date:    December 21, 2003


                                       2





                                  EXHIBIT INDEX

Exhibit
Number     Description                                    Sequential Page Number
- -------    -----------                                    ----------------------

99.1       The Registrant's Press Release dated December 19, 2003.          4


                                       3

EX-99

                                                                   Exhibit 99.1

ARIAD Files Shelf Registration

    CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 19, 2003--ARIAD
Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ARIA) today announced that it has filed
a shelf registration statement with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC) for the issuance of up to 7 million shares of common
stock. The Company has no immediate plans to offer or sell any shares
of its common stock. The terms of any sale would be announced in a
filing with the SEC at the time the shares are offered or sold.
    This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the
solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these
securities in any state in which such offer, solicitation or sale
would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the
securities laws of any such state.
    Some of the matters discussed herein are "forward-looking
statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. Such statements are identified by the use of words
such as "anticipate," "estimate," "expect," "project," "intend,"
"plan," "believe," and other words and terms of similar meaning in
connection with any discussion of future operating or financial
performance. Such statements are based on management's current
expectations and are subject to certain factors, risks and
uncertainties that may cause actual results, outcome of events, timing
and performance to differ materially from those expressed or implied
by such forward-looking statements. These risks include, but are not
limited to, risks and uncertainties regarding the Company's ability to
conduct preclinical and clinical studies of its product candidates and
the results of such studies, regulatory oversight, intellectual
property claims, the timing, scope, cost and outcome of legal
proceedings, future capital needs, key employees, dependence on the
Company's collaborators and manufacturers, markets, economic
conditions, products, services, prices, reimbursement rates,
competition and other risks detailed in the Company's public filings
with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including ARIAD's Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2002. The
information contained in this document is believed to be current as of
the date of original issue. The Company does not intend to update any
of the forward-looking statements after the date of this document to
conform these statements to actual results or to changes in the
Company's expectations, except as required by law.

    CONTACT: ARIAD Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
             Tom Pearson, 610-407-9260
             or
             Kathy Lawton, 617-621-2345