After Charlene McAuley’s aunt died from COVID last November aged just 51, she decided it was time to try to do something to help fight the illness: She’d use yoga.
Charlene, who grew up in Manchester, has been a passionate advocate for the discipline and its benefits – having taught yoga since 2012 and worked with Everton FC’s first team for seven years; assisting injured players with rehabilitation.
Given how yoga has been used to help sufferers of asthma and other respiratory illnesses, Charlene thought these exercises could also benefit those infected with the lingering after-effects of coronavirus – an ailment now known as ‘long COVID’.
With the help of Dr Christoph Seiland, her dedicated ‘Yoga for Long COVID’ classes were born.
“What I love so much about practising and also about teaching yoga is that when it’s really practiced in its truest way it can be applicable to everybody so long as they want to practice it,” Charlene told The Manc.
“For me, it’s really helped with my anxiety and helped create this sense of equilibrium, this sense of calm that I didn’t have before I started practising.”
ONS statistics statistics recorded in May revealed that an estimated one million people in the UK are currently suffering from long COVID.
The most common symptoms of the condition include fatigue, shortness of breath and chest tightness. Sufferers can often do little exercise and struggle with simple tasks such as climbing the stairs.
The Yoga for Long COVID programme is a six-part online course designed for recovery – and participants can do the classes at their own pace, whenever they feel ready.
Sessions are mostly chair-based and start off with very gentle movements, meaning those suffering with constant fatigue can still participate.
Charlene set up the course to help sufferers of long COVID
Charlene wants to make sure the course is accessible to everyone and is offering the classes for free for those who cannot afford them.
“This course is about giving people the tools to empower themselves to help themselves to get better and giving them something they can do which will hopefully make them feel more in control of their condition and confident to do more,” she said.
Charlene emphasised that people should not sign up for the course before consulting their doctor or before any underlying health conditions that could be causing their symptoms have been ruled out.
The programme is, however, a solution for long COVID sufferers who have been told by their physician to do light workouts and breathing exercises.
Charlene stated the course is also applicable to sufferers of asthma or chronic fatigue syndrome.
If participants complete the sessions and feel confident enough to try something more challenging, Charlene has a library of yoga classes available on her website and also teaches live classes online.
Charlene’s yoga sessions are gentle and light – meaning those suffering from fatigue can still participate
As part of her research into the benefits of practising yoga to help treat long COVID, Charlene consulted with Dr Selina Dunn, a GP specialising in system pain management.
“I think what’s important for me is that, in medicine, there are so many things out there that could potentially work that we don’t have evidence for yet. I think this is one of them. I really believe that this could help,” Selina explained.
“It’s just so sad to see that a year down the line there are people still suffering.”
Selina is involved with a group researching long COVID and hopes to use Charlene’s programme by contrast a group of long COVID sufferers who have taken part in the programme with people who haven’t – comparing how classes affect breathing, confidence and emotional wellbeing.
The Yoga for long COVID programme is in its infancy and has only been available for the past few weeks, but Charlene reports that those who have signed so far have praised its approachability.
The Manchester charity that’s championing the community one step at a time
Thomas Melia
There’s a Manchester-based charity which is helping uplift and champion communities throughout the city centre and wider Greater Manchester region.
Us Mancs certainly know a thing or two about community, whether it’s our influential music scene, football clubs, our hospitality scene and so on, but Forever Manchester takes this to the next level.
This charity has been consistently funding and supporting community initiatives throughout Greater Manchester by helping people achieve the extraordinary, all while maintaining plenty of local pride.
Forever Manchester was born from a mission to support the people and places that make Greater Manchester magic, and is all about making sure the community is at the forefront of everything they do.
Credit: Forever Manchester
The community-first charity has invested over £65 million into local communities and awarded £517,968 to over 100 different community groups.
This isn’t a new charity either, Forever Manchester has been deep in our city’s culture for quite some time since launching in 1989, most notably commissioning local poet Tony Walsh’s ‘This is the Place’.
The piece was originally published in 2012 before finding a very special place in our hearts back in 2017 when Walsh performed the poem at a vigil for the Manchester Arena attack.
This love letter to Manchester has not only gone on to become a part of the city’s history but also reaffirmed this organisation’s place throughout communities in the region.
Credit: Supplied
Now, the community-minded charity is ready to make a mark in 2025 with a whole host of initiatives, including a Forever Manchester lottery, pub quizzes, comedy nights and disco bingo.
Anyone looking to find out more information about this community-first charity and see some examples of the work it does can visit Forever Manchester’s official website.
Remember, this is a city that looks after its own – that’s the kind of energy we want to see you keeping up all year long.
And, if you have a soft spot for a tote bag or wall art prints, look no further than Forever Manchester’s shop, where every purchase directly contributes to community activities in Greater Manchester HERE.
14 iconic Oasis locations you need to visit in Manchester
Thomas Melia
Oasis are back and ahead of their sold out Heaton Park gigs, we’re showing you some of the band’s most iconic Manchester-based locations.
If you haven’t heard already, the Oasis reunion is well and truly in full swing, so what better way to celebrate than visiting some of the band’s most iconic locations in and around Manchester city centre.
Whether you want to visit the place where the boys sat together practicing their hits and eating ‘Digsy’s Dinner’, or feel ‘Supersonic’ as you stroll past their favourite football stadium, these locations should be on all Oasis fan’s radars.
Take it easy and ‘Roll With It’ as you admire an Oasis mosaic in Manchester’s Northern Quarter or ‘Go Let It Out’ as you fangirl before posing next to the actual fireplace from the Definitely Maybe album cover.
Enough time talking, now we’ve got to figure out ‘The Masterplan’ to fitting a visit to each of these iconic Oasis locations all in one day… ‘Stand by Me’ we’ve got some ground to cover.
Iconic Oasis locations around Manchester city centre
Oasis are set to play five historic sold out nights at Heaton Park in Manchester this July.
Etihad Stadium
Both Liam and Noel Gallagher have been Manchester City supporters since day one / Credit: The Manc Group
If there’s one thing Manchester loves as much as its music – it’s football, and these two Burnage boys are no different, because they’ve been showing up for a familiar blue team since day one.
Located and right next to Manchester’s newest live entertainment venue Co-op Live, why not pay the Manchester music landmark a visit too.
Where to find: Etihad Stadium, Etihad Campus, Manchester M11 3FF
India House
Noel lived in a flat at India House from 1989 to 1993 / Credit: The Manc Group
Just off Oxford Street you’ll find a very impressive Edwardian-style building with a big gold plaque outside labelled ‘India House’ – it’s even more impressive when you learn that Noel Gallagher had a flat here.
Legend has it the Gallagher brother came up with lots of the Britpop band’s most legendary hits including ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll Star’ here. Oh to be a fly on the wall when Noel wrote ‘Live Forever’.
He loved this city centre flat so much that he decided to pose outside it in 2023 for a student-led photography project titled ‘Greater Mancunians’.
Where to find: India House, 73 Whitworth Street, Manchester, M1 6LG.
This place needs no introduction as the second you even speak the word ‘Hacienda‘ the yellow and black striped poles, spotlights and cigarette smoke hit you like a brick.
Besides being one of Manchester’s most famed nightclubs thanks to the help of performances from The Smiths, New Order, Oasis and even pop royalty Madonna.
Unfortunately, this piece of Manchester’s music history was demolished in 2002 but its legacy lives on with the film 24 Hour Party People Where one scene was filmed on a rooftop in Rochdale – now The Hacienda Apartments stand in its place.
Where to find: The Hacienda Apartments, 21 Albion St, Manchester M1 5DA
The Boardwalk Nightclub
Oasis played their first gig at The Boardwalk on 14 August 1991 / Credit: The Manc Group
The Boardwalk was once a thriving nightclub and entertainment venue that welcomed the likes of The Charlatans, Happy Mondays, The Stone Roses and of course the venue where Oasis played their first gig.
The basement of this popular live music venue was once a rehearsal space for some of Manchester’s most recognisable names including James and Simply Red.
From the 90s until its closure just before the Millennium, The Boardwalk became a cultural hub for all things indie rave scoring itself a blue plaque as a ‘Madchester Venue Nightclub and Rehearsal Rooms’.
Where to find: 21 Little Peter St, Manchester M15 4PS
The next place isn’t just an iconic Oasis location, it’s also one of the most important as it’s where the band came to fruition.
This terraced property is the childhood home of founding Oasis member and guitarist, Paul Arthurs, more often known by his nickname ‘Bonehead’.
The West Didsbury house is also a part of global music history with the band shooting the artwork for their 1994 debut studio album Definitely Maybe, now one of the most recognisable Britpop covers ever.
Where to find: 8 Stratford Avenue, West Didsbury, Manchester, M20 2LH
Fog Lane Park
The Didsbury green space has a very special place in the Oasis brothers’ hearts after being an outdoor area they used to play football at growing up.
Eagle-eyed Oasis fans will be able to recognise particular shots from the band’s ‘Shakermaker’ music video which features Fog Lane Park and Burton Road.
This park is also not too far from Sifter’s Records, another notable Manc spot for the band, which also sits pretty on, you guessed it, Fog Lane.
Where to find: 139 Fog Ln, Parkville Rd, Park, Manchester M20 4UP
This musical instrument superstore near both Manchester universities has been a trusted trader for all artists and acts since 1955.
Oasis pay homage to the blue-and-yellow-signed music shop in their The Masterplan video which sees the matchstick figures of the band woven into Lowry paintings with an Oasis twist.
Roadhouse himself was known as Manchester’s Mr Music so it’s only fitting that Manchester’s biggest musical export added this shop in this animated music video.
Where to find: 123 Oxford Rd, All Saints, Manchester M1 7DU
New Islington Marina may have been completed after the boys stopped making and releasing music but it sure knows its musical history.
This canal side spot has attracted many due to its modern charm but it’s also drawn in an Oasis fan or two who have spotted a hidden message under the marina’s footbridge.
Underneath this raised walkway, Oasis fans have spotted that the title to their 1995 track ‘Cast No Shadow’ reflects in the water below, now isn’t that just ‘Supersonic’.
Where to find: New Islington Marina Prom, Manchester M4 6BX
If you know your Manchester lore then you know this record shop we’re talking about here – Sifters in Burnage is well known for being mentioned in Shakermaker by Oasis.
‘Mr Sifter sold me songs when I was just sixteen..’
Walking through the doors is like stepping through a time machine and you’re transported back to an era when physical media was still appreciated and music came on round pieces of plastic.
Microdot Boutique
Microdot on King Street is run by Brian Cannon, the designer behind iconic artwork for Oasis and The Verve (Richard Ashcroft is supporting them at their Manchester gigs), plus loads more.
It’s packed with original prints, rare memorabilia, and design history you’ll recognise instantly, such as the actual fireplace from the ‘Definitely Maybe’ cover, kindly on loan from Bonehead himself.
From the original Oasis logo to some of the most iconic sleeves of the 90s, this store is a proper slice of UK music culture – whether you’re just having a nosey or looking to take something home.
Definitely Maybe bar (and mosaic)
Everywhere in Manchester has been pretty lively ahead of the reunion shows – but it’s really going to go off at Definitely Maybe, a new Oasis-inspired bar beneath Afflecks in the Northern Quarter.
There’s a menu of cocktail inspired by the Burnage brothers, loads of memorabilia and photography from the band’s illustrious career, and even a pair of Liam’s Tommy Hilfiger underwear pegged up alongside a variety of awards, posters and vintage memorabilia of the Manchester music pioneers.
A new mosaic by Mark Kennedy has also just been unveiled on the side of Afflecks just outside.
Oasis Live ’25 wall art
Now this, is a Wonderwall.
The Coach and Horses pub in Whitefield, which has found itself on the doorstep of the Oasis reunion shows in Heaton Park, unveiled a new mural last year dedicated to the Gallaghers.
Painted by Snow Graffiti Scott, it replicates that first photo we had of the boys together for the first time in 16 years.
adidas shop
adidas made a return to Manchester city centre in spectacular style last month, launching back onto Market Street with a huge store packed with sportswear and streetwear.
And they’re honouring The Band with the Three Stripes too, with an entire section dedicated to the Oasis x adidas collection.
The limited-edition 26-piece drop brings together classic 90s silhouettes with a fresh twist including bucket hats, Firebird tracksuits, jerseys and more. So if you’re heading to Heaton Park this month, you know where to head to.
Olivia Stringer -
12th June 2021 
