The Aftermath: The Evening Led By Donkeys Projected Images of Trump and Epstein onto 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 to ensure it did not go unprotested. The gesture of rolling out the red carpet seemed particularly craven. Their next creative protest unfolded with precision.

A Deliberate Message

The group produced a short documentary exploring the connections with notorious figure Jeffrey Epstein. Its ending stated: “The president of the United States is alleged to have been a longstanding associate of the nation's most infamous child sex trafficker. His name is said to be referenced, numerous times, in documents related to the criminal probe into Epstein … And now that president, Donald Trump, is sleeping here in Windsor Castle.” (For his part, Trump maintains he fell out with Epstein long prior to Epstein’s first arrest and has consistently denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.)

Preparations and Execution

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

International press was assembled, their gaze fixed at the castle, growing restless awaiting Trump's arrival. Their film, spread rapidly globally. “While the still pictures of Epstein and Trump went viral online,” Stewart says, “I’m not sure that convinces people of anything – it just makes Trump uncomfortable. The film we made gives people something tangible to share, implying: ‘This is something really serious to examine here.’ It was a piece of guerrilla journalism about Trump and Epstein, and it was seen 20m times.”

The Moment of Projection

The film began with the official Windsor Castle logo. “It requires the castle's round tower needs a little bit of mapping,” Stewart explains. “First appeared this royal crest. The police likely thought: ‘Ah, that’s nice – the royal family,’ and then abruptly a massive image of Jeffrey Epstein materializes. This electric jolt passed through the officers around me, and they raced into the hotel.”

Not Their First Protest

This was not the group’s first rodeo; nor was it their first effort against Trump. Back in 2018, while working for Greenpeace, Stewart piloted a motorized paraglider near the hotel where the president was staying in Scotland. The following year, police visited him that any repeat, his safety wasn't assured.

The Arrests

However, 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 make the intervention, the die is cast.” The police response was swift, reaching the hotel within three minutes, “really pumped up”, he remembers. “Wearing tactical gear and baseball caps. They’d finally found some protesters. They came roaring up the stairs; prepared; tasked to safeguard the guest. Thankfully, no firearms. But they were very adrenalised when they entered the room. I had to say: ‘We should keep this really calm.’”

Delaying a large number of police officers is a long time. The fact that they didn’t know under what law to make arrests. Upon finally entering the room, “a policeman began reciting a clause of the Town and Country Planning Act, before another asked him to stop as it was incorrect.” Knowles and three additional activists were subsequently detained for malicious communications, a law related to harassment. “and it’s very specific: it’s designed to deal with a really concerning offence. Applying it to a piece of journalism, projected on to a wall, to protect the reputation of the president, seemed against the spirit of the legislation,” Stewart says archly. While the others were detained, he melted into the crowd, shortly thereafter boarded a train leaving Windsor, calling lawyers.

A Second Arrest and Questioning

Later that night, as the detainees were in the cells at Maidenhead police station, police re-entered and re-arrested them, this time for public nuisance, deeming it more likely to succeed. When they came to be questioned, the only officers available were from the child protection squad – a twist which was palpable, given the subject matter of the protest concerned Jeffrey Epstein. Knowles and his associates responded to every question with: “I have no comment.” Shortly after starting the interview, police presented a photograph: “They asked, did you take the drawer from this nightstand?’ ‘No comment.’ ‘Sir, do you know anybody else who may have had cause to take the drawer?’ ‘No comment.’ I anticipated what was coming: an image of a large projector, ratchet-strapped to several drawers. At that point, the officers struggled to maintain their composure.”

The Final Result

Just over one month later, every charge were dropped.