The Unfolding Events: The Evening Led By Donkeys Beamed Pictures Featuring Trump and Epstein onto Windsor Castle

When the announcement was made for Donald Trump’s upcoming official trip, complete with a Windsor Castle banquet on 17 September 2025, the activist collective Led By Donkeys was determined not to let it pass unprotested. The gesture of rolling out the red carpet was viewed as especially servile. Their subsequent creative protest unfolded with precision.

A Deliberate Message

The group produced a short documentary detailing Donald Trump’s relationship with the late financier Jeffrey Epstein. Its ending stated: “The commander-in-chief of the United States is alleged to have been a long-time close friend of the nation's most infamous child sex trafficker. He’s alleged to be referenced, repeatedly, in documents from the investigation into Epstein … Now that president, Donald Trump, is sleeping here within Windsor Castle.” (In response, Trump maintains he fell out with Epstein years before Epstein’s initial legal troubles and has consistently denied all allegations in relation to Epstein.)

Preparations and Execution

The activists had booked rooms in the nearby Harte and Garter hotel, rooms advertised with views of the castle and, even more helpfully, “castle view superior”, according to group founder, Ben Stewart. Their equipment included a high-lumen 32,000-lumen projector. For audio, Stewart placed a wireless speaker, hidden within a box of cereal, on top of a garbage can outside.

International press had gathered, staring at the castle, becoming bored awaiting Trump's arrival. The film, however, gained traction everywhere. “Although the still pictures of Epstein and Trump spread like wildfire online,” Stewart notes, “I doubt that convinces people of anything – it simply makes Trump uncomfortable. Our documentary gives people a social object to share, implying: ‘There’s something really serious to look at here.’ It was a piece of guerrilla journalism about Trump and Epstein, and it was seen 20m times.”

The Reveal

The film began with the official Windsor Castle logo. “Projecting onto the castle's round tower requires some technical calibration,” Stewart states. “So there’s the royal coat of arms. Officers are thinking: ‘Ah, that’s nice – a royal tribute,’ and then abruptly a massive image of Jeffrey Epstein appears. A wave of shock passed through the officers nearby, and they raced into the hotel.”

A History of Activism

It wasn't the group’s first rodeo; it wasn’t even their first action targeting Trump. Back in 2018, during his time with Greenpeace, Stewart had flown a paraglider over the resort where the then-president was staying in Scotland. The following year, 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 goes into wanting the protest works,” says Oliver Knowles, another co-founder. “By the time the police arrive, the message is already out.” Officers was rapid, reaching the hotel in under three minutes, highly agitated, he remembers. “They were in tactical gear and baseball caps. They had located some protesters. They charged up the stairs; prepared; they were on a mission to safeguard the guest. Thankfully, no firearms. But they were extremely tense upon entering the room. I had to say: ‘Let’s keep this calm.’”

Stalling multiple 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 section of the Town and Country Planning Act, which another officer told him to stop as it was incorrect.” Knowles and three additional team members were then arrested for malicious communications, a law related to harassment. “and it’s very specific: its purpose is to deal with a serious offence. Applying it to an act of journalism, projected on to a wall, in defense of 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.

An Ironic Interrogation

Some time that night, while the activists were in the cells at Maidenhead police station, officers came in 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 unit – a twist which was palpable, given the subject matter of the protest concerned Jeffrey Epstein. The activists responded to every question with: “No comment.” Shortly after starting the interview, the officers slid over a photograph: “They asked, did you remove the drawer from this nightstand?’ ‘No comment.’ ‘Sir, do you know anyone who may have had reason to remove the drawer?’ ‘No comment.’ I anticipated what was coming: an image of a giant projector, ratchet-strapped to several drawers. Then, the detectives struggled to keep a straight face.”

The Final Result

A little more than a month later, every charge were dropped.