The Unfolding Events: The Night The Activist Group Beamed Images of Trump and Epstein on to Windsor Castle

When the announcement was made for Donald Trump’s upcoming official trip, complete with a Windsor Castle banquet on 17 September 2025, the protest group Led By Donkeys was determined not to let it pass unprotested. The act of rolling out the red carpet seemed especially servile. Their subsequent art-activist event proceeded like clockwork.

A Provocative Film

The group produced 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 referenced, numerous times, in documents from the criminal probe into Epstein … And now that president, Donald Trump, is a guest within Windsor Castle.” (In response, Trump has stated 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 group had secured rooms in the nearby Harte and Garter hotel, rooms advertised with “castle view” and, more crucially, “castle view superior”, according to a co-founder, Ben Stewart. They utilized a powerful 32,000-lumen projector. For audio, Stewart placed a Bluetooth speaker, concealed within a box of cereal, on top of a garbage can outside.

The world’s media was assembled, their gaze fixed at the castle, growing restless awaiting Trump's arrival. Their film, spread rapidly globally. “Although photographs of Epstein and Trump spread like wildfire online,” Stewart notes, “I doubt that persuades anyone of anything – it simply makes Trump uneasy. The film we made gives people a social object to share, saying: ‘There’s something significant to look at here.’ We took a piece of guerrilla journalism about Trump and Epstein, and it was viewed 20m times.”

The Moment of Projection

It started with the official Windsor Castle logo. “It requires the castle's round tower needs some technical calibration,” Stewart explains. “So there’s this royal crest. Officers are thinking: ‘How pleasant – the royal family,’ and then abruptly a great big picture of Jeffrey Epstein materializes. This electric jolt passed through the officers nearby, and the police raced into the hotel.”

Not Their First Protest

It wasn't the group’s first rodeo; nor was it their first effort targeting Trump. Back in 2018, during his time with Greenpeace, Stewart had flown a motorized paraglider near the resort where the then-president was staying in Scotland. The following year, officers warned him that if he tried again, his safety wasn't assured.

Confrontation with Police

However, the activists weren't overly concerned about arrest. “My nervous energy is channelled into ensuring the protest works,” notes Oliver Knowles, another co-founder. “Once the police make the intervention, the die is cast.” The police response was rapid, arriving in the lobby in under three minutes, “really pumped up”, Knowles recalls. “Wearing tactical gear and baseball caps. They’d finally found the culprits. They came roaring up the stairs; they were briefed; they were on a mission to protect the president. Fortunately, no firearms. But they were very adrenalised upon entering the room. I had to say: ‘We should keep this calm.’”

Delaying multiple police officers for six minutes. It helped that they didn’t know which law to make arrests. When they finally entered the room, “a policeman began reciting a clause of the Town and Country Planning Act, which another officer asked him to stop as it was incorrect.” Knowles and three other team members were subsequently detained for malicious communication, a stalking law. “and it’s very specific: it’s designed to address a serious offence. Applying it to an act of journalism, displayed on a wall, to protect the reputation of the president, seemed contrary to the intent of the legislation,” Stewart says archly. As his colleagues were arrested, he slipped away, then soon after boarded a train out of Windsor, calling lawyers.

A Second Arrest and Questioning

Some time in the middle of the night, as the detainees sat in cells at Maidenhead police station, police re-entered and re-arrested them, now for causing a public nuisance, having decided a stronger charge. During interrogation, the only officers available belonged to the child protection squad – a twist which was not lost on anyone, given the subject matter of the protest concerned alleged sex offender. The activists responded to all queries with: “No comment.” A few minutes into the interview, police presented a photo: “They asked, did you remove the drawer from this nightstand?’ ‘No comment.’ ‘Sir, do you know anyone who may have had reason to remove the drawer?’ ‘No comment.’ I knew the next move: a picture of a large projector, secured to several drawers. At that point, the officers struggled to keep a straight face.”

The Final Result

Just over one month later, all charges were dropped.