What Happened Next: The Night The Activist Group Projected Images of Trump and Epstein onto Windsor Castle
When the announcement was made for Donald Trump’s upcoming official trip, complete with a royal dinner at Windsor on 17 September 2025, the protest group Led By Donkeys felt compelled not to let it pass without a statement. The gesture of rolling out the red carpet was viewed as especially servile. Their subsequent creative protest proceeded like clockwork.
A Deliberate Message
Activists created a nine-minute film detailing the connections with notorious figure Jeffrey Epstein. Its ending stated: “The president of the United States is alleged to have been a long-time close friend of America’s most notorious sex offender. His name is said to be referenced, repeatedly, in the files from the criminal probe into Epstein … Now that very man, Donald Trump, is a guest in Windsor Castle.” (For his part, Trump has stated he fell out with Epstein long prior to Epstein’s initial legal troubles and repeatedly refuted all allegations in relation to Epstein.)
Preparations and Execution
The group had booked rooms in the adjacent Harte and Garter hotel, rooms advertised with “castle view” and, even more helpfully, superior castle views, said group founder, Ben Stewart. Their equipment included a powerful 32,000-lumen projector. To broadcast sound, Stewart positioned a Bluetooth speaker, concealed within a box of cereal, atop a garbage can outside.
International press was assembled, staring at the castle, growing restless awaiting Trump's arrival. The film, however, spread rapidly everywhere. “While the still pictures of Epstein and Trump spread like wildfire online,” Stewart says, “I’m not sure that convinces people of anything – it just makes Trump uneasy. The film we made gives people a social object to share, implying: ‘This is something significant to examine here.’ It was an act of activist journalism about Trump and Epstein, and it was seen by millions.”
The Moment of Projection
The film began with the official Windsor Castle logo. “It requires a cylindrical building requires some technical calibration,” Stewart states. “First appeared this royal crest. Officers likely thought: ‘How pleasant – the royal family,’ and suddenly a massive image of Jeffrey Epstein materializes. A wave of shock goes through the officers nearby, and the police all pile into the hotel.”
Not Their First Protest
This was not their inaugural action; nor was it their first action against Trump. Back in 2018, while working for Greenpeace, Stewart had flown a paraglider over the hotel where the president was staying during a visit to Turnberry. A year later, police visited him that if he tried again, his safety wasn't assured.
Confrontation with Police
However, the group's creators were not overly concerned about arrest. “All my anxiety goes into wanting the action to succeed,” says Oliver Knowles, another co-founder. “Once the police arrive, the message is already out.” Officers was rapid, arriving in the lobby within three minutes, “really pumped up”, Knowles recalls. “Wearing jumpsuits and caps. They’d finally found some protesters. They charged up the stairs; prepared; tasked to protect the president. Thankfully, no guns. But they were very adrenalised when they entered the room. I had to say: ‘Let’s keep this calm.’”
Stalling a large number of police officers for six minutes. It helped that officers were unsure which law to charge anyone. When they finally entered 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 additional activists were then arrested 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, displayed on a wall, in defense of the reputation of the president, appeared contrary to the intent of the legislation,” Stewart says archly. 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 sat in cells at Maidenhead police station, officers came in and arrested them again, this time for public nuisance, deeming it more likely to succeed. When they came to be questioned, the only officers available belonged to the child protection unit – an irony which was palpable, given the subject matter of the protest concerned Jeffrey Epstein. Knowles and his associates responded to every question with: “No comment.” A few minutes into the interview, police presented a photo: “They asked, did you take the drawer from this nightstand?’ ‘No comment.’ ‘Sir, do you know anybody else who may have had reason to remove the drawer?’ ‘No comment.’ I anticipated the next move: an image of a giant projector, ratchet-strapped to four drawers. Then, the detectives were finding it hard to keep a straight face.”
The Final Result
A little more than one month later, all charges was dismissed.
