The Aftermath: The Evening Led By Donkeys Beamed Images of Trump and Epstein on to Windsor Castle

When plans were revealed for the former president's second state visit, including a royal dinner at Windsor on 17 September 2025, the activist collective Led By Donkeys felt compelled to ensure it did not go unprotested. The act of offering a lavish welcome seemed especially servile. Their subsequent creative protest unfolded like clockwork.

A Deliberate Message

Activists created a short documentary exploring the connections with notorious figure Jeffrey Epstein. It concluded: “The president of the United States is alleged to have been a longstanding associate of the nation's most infamous sex offender. He’s alleged to be mentioned, repeatedly, in documents related to the criminal probe into Epstein … And now that very man, Donald Trump, is sleeping here within Windsor Castle.” (For his part, Trump maintains he fell out with Epstein years before Epstein’s first arrest and has consistently denied all allegations concerning Epstein.)

Preparations and Execution

The group had booked rooms in the adjacent Harte and Garter hotel, which boast “castle view” and, more crucially, superior castle views, according to group founder, Ben Stewart. Their equipment included a powerful 32,000-lumen projector. To broadcast sound, Stewart placed a wireless speaker, hidden inside a cereal box, atop a garbage can outside.

The world’s media was assembled, their gaze fixed at the castle, growing restless as Trump was delayed. The film, however, gained traction everywhere. “Although the still pictures of Epstein and Trump went viral online,” Stewart notes, “I doubt that convinces people of anything – it simply makes Trump uneasy. The film we made gives people something tangible 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 seen 20m times.”

The Reveal

The film began with the recognizable Windsor Castle logo. “Projecting onto a cylindrical building needs some technical calibration,” Stewart explains. “First appeared the royal coat of arms. Officers are thinking: ‘Ah, that’s nice – the royal family,’ and then abruptly a massive image of Jeffrey Epstein appears. A wave of shock passed through the police in fluorescent jackets nearby, and they raced into the hotel.”

A History of Activism

This was not the group’s first rodeo; nor was it their first action targeting Trump. In 2018, during his time with Greenpeace, Stewart had flown a motorized paraglider near the resort where the president was staying during a visit to Turnberry. A year later, officers warned him that any repeat, his safety wasn't assured.

Confrontation with Police

However, the activists weren't overly concerned about arrest. “My nervous energy is channelled into wanting the protest works,” says Oliver Knowles, another co-founder. “By the time the police arrive, the die is cast.” The police response was rapid, reaching the hotel in under three minutes, “really pumped up”, Knowles recalls. “Wearing jumpsuits and baseball caps. They’d finally found the culprits. They came roaring up the stairs; prepared; tasked to safeguard the guest. Fortunately, no guns. But they were extremely tense 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 they didn’t know which law to make arrests. When they finally entered the room, “a policeman started reading a clause of the Town and Country Planning Act, before another told him to stop as it was incorrect.” Knowles and three other team members were subsequently detained for malicious communication, a law related to harassment. “The law is precise: it’s designed to deal with a really concerning 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 was on a train out of Windsor, calling lawyers.

A Second Arrest and Questioning

Some time in the middle of the night, while the activists were in the cells at Maidenhead police station, police re-entered and re-arrested them, now for public nuisance, having decided more likely to succeed. When they came to be questioned, the only officers available were from the child protection unit – a twist that was palpable, given the subject matter of the protest involved Jeffrey Epstein. The activists just answered every question with: “I have 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.’ ‘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 giant projector, secured to several drawers. At that point, the detectives were finding it hard to keep a straight face.”

The Outcome

A little more than a month later, every charge was dismissed.