The Unfolding Events: The Evening Led By Donkeys Projected Pictures Featuring Trump and Epstein on to Windsor Castle

When plans were revealed for Donald Trump’s upcoming official trip, including a Windsor Castle banquet on September 17th, 2025, the activist collective known as Led By Donkeys was determined not to let it pass without a statement. The gesture of rolling out the red carpet seemed particularly craven. Their next 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. It concluded: “The president of the United States is alleged to have been a longstanding associate of America’s most notorious child sex trafficker. He’s alleged to be mentioned, numerous times, in documents from the criminal probe into that individual … And now that very man, Donald Trump, is a guest within Windsor Castle.” (For his part, Trump has stated he ended his friendship with Epstein years before Epstein’s initial legal troubles and has consistently denied all allegations in relation to Epstein.)

Preparations and Execution

The group had booked rooms in the nearby Harte and Garter hotel, which boast “castle view” and, more crucially, “castle view superior”, according to group founder, Ben Stewart. Their equipment included a powerful 32,000-lumen projector. For audio, Stewart placed a Bluetooth speaker, hidden within a box of cereal, atop a garbage can outside.

The world’s media had gathered, their gaze fixed at the castle, growing restless awaiting Trump's arrival. Their film, spread rapidly everywhere. “While the still pictures of Epstein and Trump spread like wildfire online,” Stewart notes, “I’m not sure that convinces people of anything – it simply makes Trump uneasy. The film we made gives people a social object to share, saying: ‘This is something really serious to look at here.’ We took an act of activist journalism about Trump and Epstein, and it was viewed by millions.”

The Moment of Projection

It started with the official Windsor Castle logo. “It requires the castle's round tower needs a little bit of mapping,” Stewart states. “First appeared this royal crest. Officers are thinking: ‘Ah, that’s nice – the royal family,’ and suddenly a great big picture of Jeffrey Epstein appears. A wave of shock goes through the officers nearby, and the police all pile into the hotel.”

A History of Activism

It wasn't their inaugural action; nor was it their first effort targeting Trump. In 2018, during his time with Greenpeace, Stewart had flown a motorized paraglider over the hotel where the then-president was staying during a visit to Turnberry. The following year, police visited him that if he tried again, they couldn’t guarantee.

Confrontation with Police

But, the activists weren't overly concerned about arrest. “All my anxiety goes into wanting the action to succeed,” notes Oliver Knowles, another co-founder. “By the time the police arrive, the die is cast.” The police response was swift, arriving in the lobby within three minutes, “really pumped up”, he remembers. “Wearing tactical gear and baseball caps. They had located the culprits. They charged 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 told them: ‘We should keep this calm.’”

Stalling a large number of police officers is a long time. It helped that officers were unsure under what law to make arrests. Upon finally entering the room, “one officer started reading 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 law related to harassment. “and it’s very specific: its purpose is to deal with a serious offence. To throw it at a piece of journalism, displayed on a wall, in defense of the reputation of the president, appeared contrary to the intent of the legislation,” Stewart remarks pointedly. While the others were detained, he melted into the crowd, shortly thereafter boarded a train out of Windsor, calling lawyers.

A Second Arrest and Questioning

Later in the middle of the night, while the activists were in the cells at Maidenhead police station, officers came in and re-arrested them, now for public nuisance, deeming it a stronger charge. During interrogation, the only officers available belonged to the child protection unit – an irony which was not lost on anyone, given the subject matter of the protest involved alleged sex offender. The activists responded to all queries with: “No comment.” A few minutes into the interview, the officers slid over a photo: “‘Mr Knowles, did you take the drawer from this nightstand?’ ‘No comment.’ ‘Mr Knowles, do you know anybody else who may have had reason to remove the drawer?’ ‘No comment.’ I anticipated what was coming: an image of a large projector, secured to several drawers. Then, the officers were finding it hard to keep a straight face.”

The Outcome

A little more than one month later, every charge were dropped.