Triphenylmethyl derivatives represent an important class of dyestuffs as well as a useful family of protecting groups widely used in organic synthesis to transiently block various functional moieties. These applications are well documented and have been a subject of a number of reviews. Here we focus instead on some novel applications of a trityl which make good use of its ability to easily form a stabilised cation in combination with additional peripheral functionalities. Topics covered include applications in bioconjugation, cross-linking, mass-spectrometry, fluorescence and optics.