Bikram yoga history runs from a Calcutta gymnasium in 1923 to Los Angeles in 1971, then to London studios by 2009. A 2015 US court ruling and a 2019 documentary changed the branding, not the class. In Britain, the 26-posture sequence is still taught, often under a new name.
Bikram Yoga History at a Glance: What Reached Britain
Here is the short version for a UK reader. The class that reached British studios is a fixed sequence of 26 postures and 2 breathing exercises, taught for 90 minutes in a room heated to about 40°C. Because the sequence is fixed, a class in Manchester follows the same plan as a class in Bali.
That fixed format is the thread through the whole of Bikram yoga history. The people, the lawsuits and the logos changed. The sequence did not, and that is why a UK student can still walk into a class under almost any name and recognise it.
If you searched for Bikram yoga history because you are weighing up a class, a studio or a teacher training, this page is built around that choice. It sets out the dates that matter, what changed in Britain, and what did not. We don’t cover every chapter of the story, because the US side already has its own page.
Bikram Yoga History Before Britain: Calcutta to Los Angeles
The postures trace back to Bishnu Charan Ghosh, who founded the College of Physical Education in Calcutta in 1923. Ghosh was a physical culturist. He cared about strength, mobility and recovery, so his students used Hatha postures as training and therapy rather than ritual.
Bikram Choudhury, born in Calcutta in 1944, trained within Ghosh’s school and moved to the United States in 1971. In Los Angeles he fixed the order, added the heated room and wrote the script. That means the format most Britons know is a Los Angeles creation built on Calcutta postures.
The script is the clever part. Because the words are fixed, a newly trained teacher can lead a full class soon after qualifying. As a result, the format travelled to many countries within a few decades, and Britain was one of them.
We cover the Calcutta years, the lawsuits and the US filings in full elsewhere. If you want that record in one place, read the US-side timeline of the lineage. This page stays with Britain, because the British chapter of Bikram yoga history gets little attention elsewhere.
Bikram Yoga History in the UK: How Heated 26&2 Classes Arrived
Nobody has published a tidy date for the first Bikram class in Britain, so we won’t invent one. What we can show is a dated snapshot. In May 2009, a Londonist guide to alternative workouts described a Bikram class as 26 postures, each done twice, for 90 minutes in a room set at 40°C.
The same guide named several London studios and said another was about to open in Canary Wharf. It also noted that Bikram yoga had over 600 studios worldwide. So by 2009 the class was an established part of the London fitness scene, not a novelty.
If you want to try a class before you read further, our guide to hot yoga in London, with areas and costs sets out what to expect.
Bikram yoga history in five dates
Five dates carry most of the weight for a UK student. The right-hand column is our reading of what each one meant on this side of the Atlantic.
| Date | What happened | What it meant in the UK |
|---|---|---|
| 1923 | Ghosh opens the College of Physical Education in Calcutta. | The postures behind the class were already decades old. |
| 1971 | Choudhury begins teaching in Los Angeles. | The fixed 26&2 format, heat and script took shape here. |
| May 2009 | A London guide describes 40°C, 26-posture, 90-minute classes. | Bikram classes were already on London timetables. |
| 8 Oct 2015 | The US Ninth Circuit calls the sequence an idea, process or system. | A US ruling, so UK courts were not bound by it, but the reasoning is widely read. |
| 20 Nov 2019 | Netflix releases a documentary about the founder. | UK outlets covered it, and the name on the timetable became a question. |
Notice the gap between 2009 and 2015. For six years, in this part of Bikram yoga history, the class grew in British studios while a legal fight went on in California. Most UK students never saw that fight, because the room, the heat and the script looked the same either way.
Why Some UK Studios Renamed Their Classes
After 2019, the word “Bikram” became awkward for many studios. In New York, one long-running studio changed its name after the allegations, according to Refinery29’s UK edition. The founder lost a civil case in Los Angeles in 2016 and denies the allegations made against him.
In our reading of UK listings, timetables now carry a mix of labels: Bikram, 26&2, Hot 26&2 and Original Hot Yoga.
Nobody has published a UK count of how many studios switched, so we will not give a number. We can say why the choice was made, and it was rarely about law. That is the most useful lesson in UK Bikram yoga history: the brand moved, but the class stayed put.
- Reputation, not a court order. We know of no UK ruling that told a studio to rename a class. Where studios have explained a rename in the press, as in the New York example above, the reason was reputation.
- Search habits did not follow. Our own check of UK Google suggestions on 10 November 2026 still offered “bikram yoga london”, “bikram yoga manchester uk” and “bikram yoga birmingham uk”. So the old word keeps its pull.
- A new label needs explaining. Students have to learn that Original Hot Yoga and Bikram describe the same sequence, which is why our page on what Original Hot Yoga means and why UK studios use it exists.
The practical takeaway is simple. Judge a class by the sequence, the heat and the teacher’s training, not by the sign on the door.
How to read a UK timetable in five checks
- Look for the format: 26 postures, 2 breathing exercises, 90 minutes.
- Ask the temperature. A class near 40°C is the traditional room.
- Ask whether the teacher delivers a script or improvises a flow.
- Check where the teacher trained and how long the training lasted.
- Read recent student reviews for the teacher, not only the studio.
Is Bikram Yoga Copyrighted or Trademarked? The UK View
People often search “is bikram yoga copyrighted” after they read about the 2015 court case. The answer comes from a US court, so context matters for a reader in Britain.
On 8 October 2015 the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decided Bikram’s Yoga College of India v. Evolation Yoga. It held that the copyright in the founder’s 1979 book did not extend to the sequence itself. The court wrote that the sequence “is an idea, process, or system designed to improve health.” You can read the full opinion on the court’s website.
The Bikram yoga trademark question is separate, because trademark law is national. US records show the main BIKRAM marks were cancelled or abandoned, and the US-side timeline sets out the filing table. But a US record says nothing about the UK register. If you plan to name a UK studio or course, ask a UK trademark attorney to search first.
This is general information, not legal advice. Still, three points help a UK teacher:
- A US ruling does not bind a UK court, so treat it as guidance, not law.
- Teaching the postures is different from copying someone’s published book.
- Use your own words, your own class notes and your own studio name.
Common myths about Bikram yoga history in Britain
- Myth: A court forced UK studios to drop the name. Reality: the 2015 ruling was about copyright in the US, and it did not order any rename.
- Myth: All hot yoga is Bikram. Reality: hot yoga is a wide label, and many heated classes use flow sequences instead.
- Myth: The founder wrote the postures. Reality: they came from Ghosh’s school in Calcutta, and he fixed the order, heat and script later.
- Myth: The 2015 ruling ended the class. Reality: the class kept running, often under softer labels.
What the Research Says About the Class That Kept Its Shape
The class survived the headlines partly because researchers kept studying it. A 2023 trial from Massachusetts General Hospital (Nyer et al., Journal of Clinical Psychiatry) tested heated yoga for depression, as the Harvard Gazette reported. After 8 weeks, 59% of the yoga group had cut their symptoms by half or more, against 6.3% of the waitlist group.
Effort matters too. A 2014 University of Wisconsin study by Porcari and colleagues measured about 333 calories for women and 460 calories for men in a 90-minute class, at around 80% of maximum heart rate. For more on the numbers, see our page on hot yoga calories burned.
None of this makes hot yoga a treatment. Research suggests it may help, but heat adds real strain. If you have a heart condition, are pregnant or take medication, consult a healthcare professional before you start.
What Bikram Yoga History Means for a UK Student Today
History is useful only if it changes a decision. For a UK student, Bikram yoga history points to three practical choices, and each one is easier once you know what stayed fixed.
- Trying a class. Pick the format, not the label. If the room is about 40°C and the class runs 90 minutes, you are in the traditional class whatever the timetable calls it.
- Choosing a teacher. Ask about training. A teacher who trained in the full sequence and dialogue can explain why each posture sits where it does.
- Training to teach. Compare cost, time off and certification. A residential course abroad costs weeks of leave, while a hybrid format asks for less.
Health comes first in every case. Heat raises your heart rate, so speak to your GP if you have a heart or blood pressure condition, or if you’re pregnant. It’s a sensible step, not a formality, and it takes one appointment.
The research is part of Bikram yoga history now too. Studies of the class began to appear after the legal fights, so a UK student can judge the practice on evidence rather than on headlines. You’ll still want to read each study in context, because a small trial is not a guarantee.
From History to Training: Mr. Ian Terry’s Route From the UK to Bali
Mr. Ian Terry, E-RYT 500, trained for five years, from 2014 to 2019, with the founder of the Bikram Hot 26&2 method. So he lived the stretch of Bikram yoga history that most UK students only read about. He has 12,000+ teaching hours, and 1,500+ graduates from 80+ countries have trained with YogaFX since 2017.
His view shapes our training room. The method and the culture around the founder can be separated, so we keep the sequence and the dialogue and leave the deference behind. Trainees ask questions and get feedback in plain language.
If you are applying from the UK, the practical questions are cost and time off. The Bikram Hot 26&2 Yoga Teacher Training MasterClass is a hybrid: an online pre-course, then 6 days in Bali. The next intake runs from check-in on Sunday 24 January 2027 to check-out on Friday 29 January 2027, at Soham Wellness Center in Seminyak.
- Fee: US$1,899 Early Bird, with instalments from US$250 a month and no interest.
- Certification: Yoga Alliance RYT 200 plus the Bikram Hot 26&2 200-Hour International Yoga Certification.
- Before you fly: book a GP check if you have a heart or blood pressure condition, because training days are hot.
To weigh the routes side by side, read our comparison of yoga teacher training in Bali versus the UK. For the wider picture, our complete UK guide to Bikram yoga teacher training covers the options.
What recent graduates say
Our students have left 150 Google reviews, 50 Yoga Alliance reviews and 357 YouTube video testimonials. Two recent YouTube graduates put it in their own words:
“The last six days has been amazing beyond amazing… they have been very professional, everything very smooth, organized, efficient.”
Lily, YouTube review, 2025
“I would like to thank Mr Ian for this life-changing opportunity and all his team, thank you so much, amazing job.”
Amber, YouTube review, 2025
The Short Version of Bikram Yoga History in Britain
If you remember only a few lines of Bikram yoga history, make it these:
- The postures came from Calcutta, and the fixed class came from Los Angeles in 1971.
- London studios were teaching the 90-minute, 40°C class by May 2009.
- A 2015 US ruling and a 2019 documentary changed the branding, not the sequence.
- Today you can find the same class under several names, so judge the format and the teacher.
That is Bikram yoga history in Britain in a nutshell. The questions below pick up the points readers ask us most often.
FAQ
When did Bikram yoga come to the UK?
There is no single published date for the first UK class. A May 2009 Londonist guide already described several London studios offering the 26-posture, 90-minute class at 40°C, so the practice was established in the capital by then. Earlier history is best checked with the studios themselves.
Is Bikram yoga the same as hot yoga?
Not exactly. Bikram yoga is a fixed sequence of 26 postures and 2 breathing exercises, taught for 90 minutes at about 40°C with a scripted dialogue. Hot yoga is a wider label for any yoga in a heated room, including flow classes that change every session.
What is Bikram yoga called now in the UK?
UK studios use several labels, including Bikram, 26&2, Hot 26&2 and Original Hot Yoga. The class is the same under each name: 26 postures, 2 breathing exercises and 90 minutes in a heated room. Check the sequence and the teacher’s training rather than relying on the name.
Is Bikram yoga copyrighted?
Not in the United States. In 2015 the Ninth Circuit held that the 26-posture sequence is an idea, process or system, which copyright does not protect. UK law is separate, so check local advice before copying published text. This is general information, not legal advice.
Is this training official Bikram Choudhury teacher training?
No. YogaFX runs an independent training, not official Bikram Choudhury Teacher Training. Graduates earn Yoga Alliance RYT 200 plus the Bikram Hot 26&2 200-Hour International Yoga Certification, taught by Mr. Ian Terry, E-RYT 500, who trained for five years with the method’s founder.
Still have questions? Message Mr. Ian and the YogaFX team on WhatsApp and we will answer them personally.
