July 10, Colombo: Sri Lankan born Canadian author Michael Ondaatje's novel "The English Patient" has won the Golden Man Booker Prize.

The English Patient, the 1992 Booker Prize winner, was declared the overall winner of the Golden Man Booker Prize in the 50 year history of the award at the Man Booker 50 Festival in London's Royal Festival Hall on Sunday.

The winner of the special one-off competition held to mark the Man Booker Prize's 50th anniversary celebrations was chosen by the public.

All 51 previous winners were considered by a panel of five specially appointed judges, each of whom was asked to read the winning novels from one decade of the prize's history. Five books were shortlisted for each decade and shortlist faced a month-long public vote on the Man Booker website.

While Ondaatje's 'English Patient' listed for the '90s, 'In a Free State by V.S. Naipul represented the '70s, 'Moon Tiger' by Penelope Lively stood for the '80s, Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall was selected for the 2000s, and last year's winner Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders was chosen for the ongoing '10s.

The English Patient was adapted into a film in 1996. The film received nine Academy Awards including Best Picture and Director at the 69th Academy Awards.

Ondaatje, who was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka, then called Ceylon, in 1943 is of Dutch, Sinhalese, and Tamil ancestry.