A fireplace and a literal piano: Inside the fanciest uni room in the UK

Of course it’s at Oxford

8 months ago

An Oxford student has gone viral on TikTok after posting a video of her halls bedroom and I’m absolutely OBSESSED with how beautiful it is.

Catlin Darby is a second-year History student at Brasnose College, Oxford and her room literally has a piano, a fireplace, a double bed and a sofa. It really puts your dingy little shoebox room to shame, doesn’t it?

Oxford is well known for having some of the most Instagrammable uni buildings and boujee accommodation, but this is really another level.

“Having a piano is peak pretentious Oxford student if you ask me, and that’s who I am now, ” Caitlin told The Tab.

The average price of a room at Brasnose ranges from £132 to £246 a week and the rooms vary massively.

Have a look inside the fanciest uni room in the UK:

@caitlindarbyy

apparently its a thing in the uk that dorm rooms come with a piano ? #uniroom #roomtour #dorm #decor #oxforduniversity #roomtransformation #roominspo #accommodation #halls #oxbridge #beforeandafter

♬ Strangers – Kenya Grace

Caitlin said she’s been very lucky in the rooms she’s been given at Oxford. “Someone in the accommodation office must love me,” she said. Whilst none of her other rooms have been bad, this one is definitely the nicest and biggest.

“I think I’ve been paying the same amount of rent my whole time at Oxford and the rooms have varied in size and aesthetic despite the same price tag.”

Via TikTok

Her favourite part of her room is either the double bed or piano. She said: “It’s gotta be a tie between the bed and piano. Having a double at Oxford is a privilege I don’t take lightly, but having a piano in your room is peak pretentious Oxford student if you ask me, and that’s who I am now.”

Caitlin said that she doesn’t play piano and had no clue why there is a piano in her room: “It was here when the previous tenant lived here too. I’ve been Googling easy piano song beginners no sheet music and can now confidently replicate the left hand side of Adele’s Hello at half the speed.”

Via TikTok

When she first moved into the room, the first thing that Caitlin said she did was cry: “It sounds dramatic but I’ve always really cared about my bedroom and having a clean, beautiful space, and it’s definitely a big change from what I was used to before uni.”

She plans to have dinner parties, movie nights and “maybe a few afters” in the room. Literally take me there right now!

As a tenant, unlike a lot of other Oxford students, she doesn’t have to move out of the room during the holidays. “It means my room gets a lot of use and I get to call this place my home for even longer.”

Via TikTok

To make her already beautiful room even nicer, Caitlin flipped the curtains round to cover up the navy blue patterns, covered a bright green notice board with white paper and put a bedsheet over the dark purple sofa. “One of the most striking features is probably the fairy light canopy above my sofa which I DIY’ed. And then I’d say the rug and beanbag which I’ve had for years really make it look homey.”

Via TikTok

Addressing the massive attention her room got on TikTok, Caitlin said: “There’s a real thirst for Oxford content on TikTok, it only takes one glance at my page or the Oxford University hashtag to see that there’s demand. All of my friends who’ve been in my room have also said how nice it is so I assumed people on social media would enjoy seeing it. It’s not every lifetime you get to live in a room like this in a uni like this. I’d be a fool not to milk it!”

Have you got a uni room that could rival this? Let us know by emailing [email protected]

Featured images via TikTok.