8-K

                                  UNITED STATES
                       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): October 29, 2002


                         Shire Pharmaceuticals Group plc
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             (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)


                                England and Wales
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                 (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation)


              0-29630                                      98-0359573
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     (Commission File Number)                  (IRS Employer Identification No.)

Hampshire International Business Park, Chineham, Basingstoke,
Hampshire RG24 8EP England
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(Address of principal executive offices)                    (Zip code)

Registrant's telephone number, including area code       44 1256 894 000
                                                  ------------------------------



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          (Former name or former address, if changed since last report)






Item 5. Other Events

     Shire Pharmaceuticals Group plc has issued the press release attached as
Exhibit 99.1 and incorporated by reference herein.

Item 7. Financial Statements and Exhibits

     (c) Exhibits. The following exhibit is filed herewith:

         99.1      Press Release dated October 29, 2002




                                      -2-



                                    SIGNATURE


     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 hereunto duly authorized.

Dated: October 29, 2002          SHIRE PHARMACEUTICALS GROUP PLC



                                 By: /s/ Angus Charles Russell
                                     -------------------------------------------
                                     Name:  Angus Charles Russell
                                     Title:  Group Finance Director







                                  EXHIBIT INDEX


Number   Description

99.1     Press Release dated October 29, 2002

EX-99.1

Shire Pharmaceuticals Group plc
Hampshire International Business Park,
Chineham, Basingstoke RG24 8EP  UK
Tel +44 1256 894000 Fax +44 1256 894708
http://www.shire.com

For Immediate Release

                     Shire Chief Executive Stahel to Leave;
                  Will Remain In Post Until Successor Is Found
                Global Search for Candidate to Begin Immediately

BASINGSTOKE, UK - 29th October 2002 - Shire Pharmaceuticals Group PLC (LSE: SHP,
NASDAQ ADR: SHPGY, TSX: SHQ) today announced that Rolf Stahel will leave the
board, and the company, as soon as a successor is found. The Board will commence
a global search for a new chief executive immediately.

"Shire's future prospects are strong," Mr. Stahel said. "After leading six
mergers and acquisitions and with the successful launch of Adderall XR this
year, I now believe this is the right time to prepare to hand the company over
to a successor."

Acknowledging Mr. Stahel's contributions, Dr. James Cavanaugh, chairman, said,
"The Board is grateful for Rolf's nearly nine years of service during the period
when the company grew from $3 million of annual sales to $878 million at the end
of 2001, and today's market capitalisation of nearly $4 billion. Shire now is
poised for a new chapter of growth.

"Shire has a strong product pipeline, a deep and capable management team, a
highly skilled R&D staff and a first-rate sales force, so we are quite
optimistic that we will have a new CEO in place early next year. In the
meantime, we will continue to execute our strategic plan," Dr. Cavanaugh said.

Revenue and earnings guidance reiterated

Shire reiterates its prior revenue and earnings guidance last provided on 1
August 2002, which is repeated below:

Full year 2002: Shire is currently likely to deliver total revenue growth in the
mid to high teens and mid to high single digit earnings growth compared to 2001.
Operating margin is still forecast to be at the upper end of Shire's stated
target range of 25-30%.

Assuming the anticipated continued success of ADDERALL XR and the potential
launch and roll out of FOSRENOL in European and US markets, subject to
regulatory approvals, as well as growth from other significant sources of
revenue, Shire continues to remain confident that it can deliver good growth in
2003.

Shire will announce its Q3 results on 6 November 2002.





Mr. Stahel, 58 years old, joined Shire in March 1994, as chief executive. Under
Mr. Stahel, the company made several strategic acquisitions, launched major new
products and dramatically enlarged Shire and positioned it in new markets.

                                      Ends




Media Enquiries

                                                                               
Shire:                                                 Hullin Metz:
Jessica Mann - Media           +44 1256 894280         Susan Hullin:                    +1 212 752 1044
Financial Dynamics:                                    Chancery Communications:
Tim Spratt:                    +44 207 269 713         David Waller:                    +44 207 2696940



Investor Relations

Shire:
Angus Russell:  01256 894127

Shire Pharmaceuticals Group plc

Shire Pharmaceuticals Group plc (Shire) is a rapidly growing international
specialty pharmaceutical company with a strategic focus on three therapeutic
areas - central nervous system disorders (CNS), oncology and anti-infectives.
Shire also has two platform technologies: advanced drug delivery and Biologics.
Shire's core strategy is based on research and development combined with
in-licensing and a focus on eight key pharmaceutical markets.

THE "SAFE HARBOUR" STATEMENT UNDER THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT
OF 1995. The statements in this press release that are not historical facts are
forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements involve a number of
risks and uncertainties and are subject to change at any time. In the event that
such risks or uncertainties materialise, Shire's results could be materially
affected. The risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, risks
associated with the inherent uncertainty of pharmaceutical research, product
development and commercialisation, the impact of competitive products, patents,
government regulation and approval, and other risks and uncertainties detailed
from time to time in periodic reports produced by Shire, including the Annual
Report filed on Form 10K by Shire with the Securities and Exchange Commission.