Reyland Murks

**Reyland Angus Murks** is a writer of Engines of Eight.

## Details

Name: Reyland Angus Murks

* Born: March 14, 1955
* Birthplace: Glasgow, Scotland
* Nationality: Scottish/British
* Occupation: Episode Writer
* Years in the Job: 25 years
* Parents: Robert and Fiona Murks
	+ Siblings: One younger sister, Eileen Murks
* Marriage/Children: Married to Charlotte Murks, two children: James and Sophie Murks
* Death: Still Living

## Biography

Reyland Angus Murks was born on March 14, 1955, in Glasgow, Scotland, to Robert Murks and Fiona Murks. He had only one younger sister named Eileen Murks, who was born on May 17, 1959. Growing up, Reyland developed a habit of writing and also listening to music. His writing career began in the 9th grade, when he wrote a short story for his English class. His music career started back in 6th grade when he joined the school band and learned to play the trumpet.

Although Reyland was a good student in both writing and music, he often found it difficult to balance his time between the two. Regardless, though, he persevered and managed to excel in both areas.

On December 25, 1975, Reyland applied for a job at Dockyard Films, and his journey with the company began on that day. He explained to the job interviewers that he didn't mind if he was put in the music department or the writing department and that he was confident in his abilities to succeed in either role. As Dockyard Films needed some more writers for Engines of Eight, the company placed Reyland in the writing department. When he wrote stories such as Tom, he would often hum tunes or even whistle music while he worked. Some people often nicknamed him "the melodious writer" because of this. Reyland didn't mind the name; he was just happy to have found a job that allowed him to express his creativity and passion for both writing and music simultaneously.

Reyland wrote several well-received stories during Series 1 and Series 2, and he has even stated that he often has ties with these seasons for the rest of his life. When he wrote stories for Series 3, he did try to write with the same level of enthusiasm and dedication; however, due to Crownmire Enterprises seemingly bossy nature towards UK writers, he found it difficult to fully capture the same passion and authenticity. The last series that Reyland wrote stories for was Series 4, as, unsurprisingly, Series 3's production was a massive hinderance to his ability to write stories.

In 1989, during planning for Series 5, the idea for creating an Engines of Eight movie began. Reyland was excited about the prospect of bringing his ideas to the big screen and joined the film production team as a screenwriter. Due to the film's multi-cultural collaboration, Reyland did express concerns that there might be challenges in ensuring an accurate representation of different sides. Lo and behold, he was right, since all sides (filming, screenwriting, production, and editing) had to work closely together when they really didn't want to. Reyland says that "it was a constant battle to work with everyone. For one, there was a language barrier between certain individuals that hindered effective communication and collaboration. Secondly, there were cultural differences that made it challenging to find common ground and understand each other's perspectives. Sometimes, you'd have people who would work through the night (sometimes sleeping in the office), while me and most others would just go home after normal business hours. Some of us (particularly in the screenwriting department) were known to be very sour towards each other, and one of the screenwriters on the US side called one of the Japan-side screenwriters, for lack of a better word, an arrogant pain in the ass. In fact, I believed that the other sides weren't happy, and I figured that they would've just preferred if a UK-based team did the film alone to avoid any conflicts and frustrations." The film's constant crew clashes delayed its 1998 release in the US and its 2000 release in the UK.

Finally, after what felt like a never-ending production, the film was finally finished in 1999 and was scheduled for an October 2, 1999, release in the US with a later UK release on August 14, 2001. However, it was ultimately cancelled because of a lawsuit with The Britt Allcroft Company.

Reyland was devastated to hear that the movie was canceled. He had been eagerly anticipating its release for years, but even so, he was happy that he was at least part of a project that, although tedious and tense, allowed him to showcase his skills to a wider audience. He retired from Dockyard Films on June 25, 2000, and enjoyed the peaceful life he had always longed for.

In his personal life, Reyland's writing career was mostly uneventful in terms of making friends, but his music career allowed him to meet many friends. One of these friends he met was Charlotte Wood, a flute player in the band. The two started seeing each other in middle school, but their relationship blossomed into their high school years. After they both graduated college, Reyland and Charlotte married on February 5, 1969. The couple had a happy marriage and had two children: James (born in 1972) and Sophie (born in 1976). Following his retirement from Dockyard Films as a writer, Reyland became a high school band director and continued to share his love for music with young students.

Today, Reyland remains alive and well, enjoying his retirement and spending time with his grandchildren. He is proud of the impact he has made on his students' lives and continues to teach his high school students to be musicians. Reyland's passion for music has not wavered, and he still plays the trumpet every once in a while.