The Aftermath: The Night Led By Donkeys Projected Pictures Featuring Trump and Epstein onto Windsor Castle
When plans were revealed for Donald Trump’s upcoming official trip, complete with a royal dinner at Windsor on 17 September 2025, the protest group known as Led By Donkeys felt compelled to ensure it did not go without a statement. The gesture of rolling out the red carpet was viewed as particularly craven. Their next creative protest proceeded like clockwork.
A Provocative Film
The group produced a short documentary detailing the connections with the late financier Jeffrey Epstein. Its ending stated: “The president of the United States was a longstanding associate of America’s most notorious child sex trafficker. His name is said to be mentioned, repeatedly, in documents from the investigation into Epstein … Now that president, Donald Trump, is sleeping here within Windsor Castle.” (In response, 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 activists had booked rooms in the nearby Harte and Garter hotel, which boast “castle view” and, more crucially, superior castle views, according to group founder, Ben Stewart. They utilized a powerful 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, growing restless as Trump was delayed. The film, however, spread rapidly globally. “While the still pictures of Epstein and Trump went viral online,” Stewart says, “I’m not sure that convinces people of anything – it simply makes Trump uneasy. Our documentary provides viewers a social object to share, implying: ‘This is something really serious to look at here.’ It was a piece of guerrilla journalism about Trump and Epstein, and it was viewed 20m times.”
The Reveal
The film began with the recognizable Windsor Castle logo. “It requires a cylindrical building requires a little bit of mapping,” Stewart states. “First appeared the royal coat of arms. Officers likely thought: ‘How pleasant – the royal family,’ and then abruptly a massive image of Jeffrey Epstein appears. This electric jolt passed through the officers nearby, and they all pile into the hotel.”
Not Their First Protest
This was not their inaugural action; it wasn’t even their first effort against Trump. In 2018, while working for Greenpeace, Stewart had flown a motorized paraglider over the resort where the then-president was staying in Scotland. A year later, officers warned him that any repeat, his safety wasn't assured.
Confrontation with Police
However, the group's creators weren't overly concerned about arrest. “My nervous energy goes into wanting the protest works,” says Oliver Knowles, another co-founder. “Once the police make the intervention, the die is cast.” The police response was swift, reaching the hotel in under three minutes, “really pumped up”, he remembers. “Wearing jumpsuits and caps. They’d finally found some protesters. They came roaring up the stairs; prepared; tasked to safeguard the guest. Thankfully, no firearms. But they were extremely tense when they entered the room. I told them: ‘Let’s keep this calm.’”
Delaying multiple police officers for six minutes. The fact that they were unsure which law to make arrests. When they finally entered the room, “a policeman began reciting a section of the Town and Country Planning Act, which another officer asked him to stop as it was incorrect.” Knowles and three additional team members were then arrested for malicious communications, a stalking law. “and it’s very specific: its purpose is to address a really concerning offence. To throw it at a piece of journalism, projected on to a wall, to protect the reputation of the president, seemed against the spirit of the legislation,” Stewart remarks pointedly. As his colleagues were arrested, he slipped away, then soon after was on a train leaving Windsor, contacting legal counsel.
An Ironic Interrogation
Later in the middle of the 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 only officers available were from the child protection unit – an irony which was palpable, given the focus of the protest concerned alleged sex offender. Knowles and his associates just answered every question with: “I have no comment.” Shortly after starting the interview, police presented a photo: “They asked, did you take the drawer from this nightstand?’ ‘No comment.’ ‘Sir, do you know anyone who may have had reason to remove the drawer?’ ‘No comment.’ I knew the next move: an image of a giant projector, secured to four drawers. Then, the officers struggled to keep a straight face.”
The Outcome
A little more than one month later, all charges was dismissed.