What Happened Next: The Evening Led By Donkeys Beamed Pictures Featuring Trump and Epstein on to Windsor Castle

When plans were revealed for the former president's upcoming official trip, complete with a royal dinner at Windsor on 17 September 2025, the activist collective known as Led By Donkeys felt compelled to ensure it did not go without a statement. The act of rolling out the red carpet was viewed as especially servile. Their next art-activist event unfolded with precision.

A Deliberate Message

The group produced a short documentary detailing the connections with notorious figure Jeffrey Epstein. It concluded: “The commander-in-chief of the United States was a longstanding associate of America’s most notorious child sex trafficker. He’s alleged to be mentioned, repeatedly, in the files related to the criminal probe into Epstein … And now that president, Donald Trump, is a guest in Windsor Castle.” (In response, Trump has stated he ended his friendship with Epstein years before Epstein’s first arrest and has consistently denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.)

The Setup

The activists had booked rooms in the nearby Harte and Garter hotel, which boast “castle view” and, more crucially, “castle view superior”, said group founder, Ben Stewart. They utilized a high-lumen 32,000-lumen projector. To broadcast sound, Stewart positioned a Bluetooth speaker, hidden within a box of cereal, atop a public rubbish bin outside.

International press had gathered, their gaze fixed at the castle, becoming bored as Trump was delayed. Their film, gained traction everywhere. “Although photographs of Epstein and Trump spread like wildfire online,” Stewart says, “I doubt that persuades anyone of anything – it simply makes Trump uneasy. Our documentary provides viewers a social object to share, implying: ‘There’s something significant to look at here.’ We took a piece of guerrilla journalism about Trump and Epstein, and it was seen 20m times.”

The Reveal

The film began with the recognizable Windsor Castle logo. “Projecting onto the castle's round tower needs some technical calibration,” Stewart states. “So there’s this royal crest. Officers are thinking: ‘How pleasant – a royal tribute,’ and then abruptly a great big picture of Jeffrey Epstein materializes. This electric jolt passed through the police in fluorescent jackets nearby, and the police all pile into the hotel.”

Not Their First Protest

It wasn't the group’s first rodeo; it wasn’t even their first effort targeting Trump. In 2018, during his time with Greenpeace, Stewart had flown a paraglider over the resort where the then-president was staying in Scotland. A year later, police visited him that if he tried again, his safety wasn't assured.

Confrontation with Police

But, the group's creators were not especially worried about arrest. “My nervous energy is channelled into ensuring the action to succeed,” notes Oliver Knowles, a fellow founder. “By the time the police make the intervention, the die is cast.” Officers was rapid, reaching the hotel within three minutes, highly agitated, he remembers. “They were in jumpsuits and baseball caps. They had located the culprits. They charged up the stairs; prepared; tasked to safeguard the guest. Thankfully, no firearms. But they were extremely tense upon entering the room. I told them: ‘Let’s keep this calm.’”

Delaying a large number of police officers is a long time. The fact that officers were unsure under what law to charge anyone. When they finally entered the room, “one officer started reading a section of the Town and Country Planning Act, which another officer told him to stop as it was incorrect.” Knowles and three other team members were subsequently detained for malicious communications, a stalking law. “The law is precise: it’s designed to address a serious offence. To throw it at an act of journalism, projected on to a wall, to protect the reputation of the president, appeared against the spirit of the legislation,” Stewart remarks pointedly. As his colleagues were arrested, he slipped away, shortly thereafter was on a train out of Windsor, contacting legal counsel.

A Second Arrest and Questioning

Some time that 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 sole available interrogators were from the child protection squad – a twist that was palpable, given the subject matter of the protest involved Jeffrey Epstein. The activists just answered all queries with: “No comment.” A few minutes into the interview, police presented a photograph: “They asked, did you remove the drawer from this bedside table?’ ‘No comment.’ ‘Sir, do you know anyone who may have had cause to take the drawer?’ ‘No comment.’ I knew the next move: a picture of a giant projector, secured to four drawers. At that point, the officers were finding it hard to keep a straight face.”

The Final Result

Just over a month later, every charge was dismissed.