The Aftermath: The Night The Activist Group Projected Pictures Featuring Trump and Epstein on to Windsor Castle
When plans were revealed for the former president's upcoming official trip, including a Windsor Castle banquet on September 17th, 2025, the protest group known as Led By Donkeys was determined not to let it pass without a statement. The gesture of offering a lavish welcome was viewed as especially servile. Their subsequent art-activist event unfolded like clockwork.
A Provocative Film
Activists created a short documentary detailing the connections 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 sex offender. He’s alleged to be mentioned, numerous times, in the files related to the investigation into that individual … And now that president, Donald Trump, is sleeping here within Windsor Castle.” (For his part, Trump maintains he ended his friendship 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 nearby Harte and Garter hotel, rooms advertised with views of the castle and, even more helpfully, “castle view superior”, said a co-founder, Ben Stewart. They utilized a powerful projector. For audio, Stewart positioned a Bluetooth speaker, hidden within a box of cereal, on top of a public rubbish bin outside.
The world’s media had gathered, staring at the castle, becoming bored as Trump was delayed. The film, however, gained traction everywhere. “While photographs of Epstein and Trump spread like wildfire online,” Stewart says, “I doubt that convinces people of anything – it simply makes Trump uneasy. Our documentary provides viewers a social object to share, implying: ‘There’s something significant to examine here.’ We took a piece of guerrilla journalism about Trump and Epstein, and it was viewed by millions.”
The Moment of Projection
It started with the recognizable Windsor Castle logo. “It requires a cylindrical building requires a little bit of mapping,” Stewart explains. “First appeared the royal coat of arms. Officers are thinking: ‘How pleasant – the royal family,’ and suddenly a great big picture of Jeffrey Epstein appears. This electric jolt goes through the police in fluorescent jackets nearby, and they all pile into the hotel.”
A History of Activism
It wasn't their inaugural action; it wasn’t even their first action targeting Trump. In 2018, while working for Greenpeace, Stewart piloted a paraglider near the resort where the president was staying in Scotland. The following year, officers warned him that any repeat, his safety wasn't assured.
The Arrests
But, the group's creators weren't overly concerned about arrest. “My nervous energy goes into ensuring the action to succeed,” says Oliver Knowles, a fellow founder. “Once the police make the intervention, the message is already out.” The police response was swift, reaching the hotel in under three minutes, highly agitated, Knowles recalls. “Wearing jumpsuits and caps. They had located the culprits. They came roaring up the stairs; they were briefed; tasked to protect the president. Thankfully, no firearms. But they were extremely tense upon entering the room. I had to say: ‘We should keep this calm.’”
Stalling a large number of police officers is a long time. The fact that they didn’t know which law to charge anyone. Upon finally entering the room, “one officer started reading a section of the Town and Country Planning Act, which another officer told him to stop because it wasn’t right.” Knowles and three other team members were then arrested for malicious communication, a stalking law. “The law is precise: its purpose is to address a serious offence. Applying it to an act of journalism, projected on to 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 melted into the crowd, shortly thereafter was on a train leaving Windsor, calling lawyers.
A Second Arrest and Questioning
Some time that night, while the activists were in the cells at Maidenhead police station, police re-entered and arrested them again, now for causing a public nuisance, having decided more likely to succeed. During interrogation, the only officers available belonged to the child protection unit – an irony that was not lost on anyone, given the focus of the protest concerned alleged sex offender. The activists responded to every question with: “No comment.” Shortly after starting the interview, the officers slid over a photo: “They asked, did you remove 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 knew what was coming: a picture of a giant projector, ratchet-strapped to several drawers. At that point, the detectives were finding it hard to keep a straight face.”
The Final Result
A little more than a month later, all charges were dropped.
