The Aftermath: The Evening The Activist Group Projected Pictures Featuring Trump and Epstein onto Windsor Castle
When the announcement was made for Donald Trump’s second state visit, including a Windsor Castle banquet on 17 September 2025, the activist collective known as Led By Donkeys felt compelled to ensure it did not go unprotested. The act of rolling out the red carpet seemed particularly craven. Their next creative protest proceeded like clockwork.
A Deliberate Message
Activists created a nine-minute film exploring Donald Trump’s relationship with the late financier Jeffrey Epstein. Its ending stated: “The president of the United States is alleged to have been a long-time close friend of the nation's most infamous sex offender. He’s alleged to be mentioned, numerous times, in the files related to the criminal probe into Epstein … And now that very man, Donald Trump, is sleeping here in Windsor Castle.” (For his part, Trump maintains he fell out with Epstein long prior to Epstein’s initial legal troubles and has consistently denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.)
The Setup
The activists had secured rooms in the adjacent Harte and Garter hotel, which boast “castle view” and, even more helpfully, superior castle views, said a co-founder, Ben Stewart. They utilized a high-lumen projector. For audio, Stewart placed a wireless speaker, hidden inside a cereal box, on top of a garbage can outside.
The world’s media had gathered, staring at the castle, growing restless awaiting Trump's arrival. Their film, spread rapidly everywhere. “Although the still pictures of Epstein and Trump went viral online,” Stewart notes, “I’m not sure that convinces people of anything – it simply makes Trump uncomfortable. The film we made gives people a social object to share, saying: ‘This is something significant to look at here.’ It was an act of activist journalism about Trump and Epstein, and it was viewed 20m times.”
The Reveal
The film began with the recognizable Windsor Castle logo. “Projecting onto a cylindrical building requires some technical calibration,” Stewart explains. “So there’s the royal coat of arms. Officers likely thought: ‘How pleasant – the royal family,’ and suddenly a great big picture of Jeffrey Epstein appears. A wave of shock goes through the officers nearby, and they all pile into the hotel.”
Not Their First Protest
It wasn't the group’s first rodeo; nor was it their first action targeting Trump. In 2018, during his time with Greenpeace, Stewart piloted a motorized paraglider near the resort where the president was staying during a visit to Turnberry. The following year, officers warned him that if he tried again, his safety wasn't assured.
The Arrests
But, the group's creators weren't especially worried about detainment. “My nervous energy goes into ensuring the protest works,” says Oliver Knowles, another co-founder. “Once the police arrive, the message is already out.” The police response was swift, arriving in the lobby in under three minutes, “really pumped up”, Knowles recalls. “Wearing tactical gear and baseball caps. They’d finally found some protesters. They charged up the stairs; they were briefed; tasked to protect the president. Thankfully, no guns. But they were very adrenalised upon entering the room. I told them: ‘We should keep this really calm.’”
Stalling multiple police officers for six minutes. The fact that they didn’t know which law to charge anyone. When they finally entered the room, “a policeman started reading a section of the Town and Country Planning Act, before another told him to stop as it was incorrect.” Knowles and three other activists were then arrested for malicious communication, a stalking law. “The law is precise: it’s designed to address a serious offence. Applying it to a piece of journalism, displayed on a wall, to protect the reputation of the president, appeared against the spirit of the legislation,” Stewart says archly. As his colleagues were arrested, he slipped away, shortly thereafter was on a train out of Windsor, contacting legal counsel.
A Second Arrest and Questioning
Later that night, while the activists were in the cells at Maidenhead police station, officers came in and re-arrested them, this time for public nuisance, having decided more likely to succeed. During interrogation, the sole available interrogators belonged to the child protection unit – a twist that was not lost on anyone, given the subject matter of the protest concerned alleged sex offender. Knowles and his associates just answered every question with: “No comment.” Shortly after starting the interview, the officers slid over a photograph: “They asked, did you remove the drawer from this bedside table?’ ‘No comment.’ ‘Mr Knowles, do you know anyone who may have had reason to remove the drawer?’ ‘No comment.’ I knew what was coming: a picture of a large projector, secured to several drawers. Then, the officers struggled to maintain their composure.”
The Outcome
A little more than a month later, all charges were dropped.
