An introduction to the thiazole ring system is presented together with a detailed, but non-exhaustive review of the rapidly emerging area of palladium-mediated directed arylation. The direct arylation of thiazole is also discussed together with our attempts to improve the established methods. A high-yielding, mild protocol has been developed for the functionalisation of the most electron-rich carbon-hydrogen bonds in a number of heterocyclic ring systems, this represents the first example of a C-H activation reaction being accomplished in aqueous media and allows access to a diverse range of functionalised aryl heterocycles. In addition, work towards functionalisation of the thiazole C4 position is described. A number of different approaches are discussed and our endeavors are recorded.