Editing Upali Wijewardene (section)

==Early life and family==
Wijewardene was born on 17 February 1938, at his paternal grandmother's house in Sri Ramya, Colombo, to Don Walter Tudugalle Wijewardene and Anula Kalyanawathie Wijesinghe. The youngest and only son of his parents, he had two older sisters, Anoja and Kalyani. The Wijewardene family was from Kelaniya. His grandfather, Muhandiram Don Phillip Wijeywardene, a timber merchant, founded the family business. Wijewardene lost his father when he was eighteen months old, and was raised by his mother in the family home Sedawatte Walawwe in Kolonnawa.[4][5]

The Wijewardene family had made its money by supplying timber for construction in the city of Colombo. They reinvested their profits in various ventures, including real estate, and became influential in local politics. Upali's paternal uncle, Don Richard Wijewardena, was a press baron, and his cousin J. R. Jayewardene became the second President of Sri Lanka, serving from 1978 to 1989. Ray Wijewardene, a cousin, was an engineer, aviator, inventor, and Olympic athlete.[6] His sister Anoja married Stanley Wijesundera, a professor of chemistry and later the first vice-chancellor of the University of Colombo, while his other sister Kalyani married Dr. G.M. Attygalle.

On 7 November 1975, Wijewardene married Lakmini Ratwatte, daughter of Dr. Seevali Ratwatte, niece of Sirimavo Bandaranaike, and granddaughter of Barnes Ratwatte Dissawa.[7][8] Wijewardene moved into a house on Thurstan Road, designed by Geoffrey Bawa, which included a helipad for his private helicopter. He also owned a country house, Sunnycroft Bungalow, in Nuwara Eliya.[9] He held the position of Basnayake Nilame (chief lay custodian) at the Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara, a temple that had been supported by his family.[4] An amateur racing enthusiast, Wijewardene participated in races with his mother's Opel Kapitan at the Katukurunde Races in the early 1960s.