The Aftermath: The Evening Led By Donkeys Projected Pictures Featuring Trump and Epstein on to Windsor Castle
When plans were revealed for Donald Trump’s upcoming official trip, including a Windsor Castle banquet on September 17th, 2025, the activist collective known as Led By Donkeys felt compelled to ensure it did not go unprotested. The gesture of rolling out the red carpet was viewed as especially servile. Their next creative protest unfolded like clockwork.
A Provocative Film
Activists created a short documentary exploring the connections with the late financier Jeffrey Epstein. It concluded: “The commander-in-chief of the United States was a longstanding associate of the nation's most infamous child sex trafficker. He’s alleged to be mentioned, numerous times, in the files related to the investigation into that individual … Now that president, Donald Trump, is sleeping here within Windsor Castle.” (In response, Trump maintains he fell out with Epstein long prior to Epstein’s first arrest and repeatedly refuted all allegations in relation to Epstein.)
Preparations and Execution
The group had secured rooms in the adjacent Harte and Garter hotel, rooms advertised with “castle view” and, more crucially, “castle view superior”, according to a co-founder, Ben Stewart. Their equipment included a high-lumen projector. For audio, Stewart positioned a Bluetooth speaker, concealed within a box of cereal, atop a garbage can outside.
The world’s media had gathered, staring at the castle, becoming bored awaiting Trump's arrival. The film, however, gained traction 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 uncomfortable. The film we made 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 Moment of Projection
It started with the official Windsor Castle logo. “It requires the castle's round tower needs a little bit of mapping,” Stewart explains. “So there’s the royal coat of arms. Officers are thinking: ‘How pleasant – the royal family,’ and suddenly a massive image of Jeffrey Epstein materializes. A wave of shock passed through the officers around me, and they raced into the hotel.”
A History of Activism
It wasn't the group’s first rodeo; nor was it their first action against Trump. Back in 2018, during his time with Greenpeace, Stewart piloted a paraglider over the resort where the then-president was staying in Scotland. A year later, police visited him that any repeat, his safety wasn't assured.
The Arrests
However, the activists were not especially worried about arrest. “My nervous energy is channelled into ensuring the action to succeed,” says Oliver Knowles, a fellow founder. “Once the police arrive, the die is cast.” The police response was rapid, arriving in the lobby in under three minutes, “really pumped up”, Knowles recalls. “Wearing tactical gear and baseball caps. They had located some protesters. They charged up the stairs; prepared; they were on a mission to protect the president. Thankfully, no firearms. But they were very adrenalised upon entering the room. I told them: ‘Let’s keep this really calm.’”
Delaying multiple police officers for six minutes. The fact that officers didn’t know which law to make arrests. 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 additional team members were subsequently detained for malicious communication, a stalking law. “and it’s very specific: its purpose is to address a serious offence. Applying it to a piece 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. While the others were detained, he melted into the crowd, then soon after boarded a train out of Windsor, calling lawyers.
An Ironic Interrogation
Some time in the middle of the night, as the detainees sat in cells at Maidenhead police station, officers came in and arrested them again, now for causing a public nuisance, having decided a stronger charge. During interrogation, the sole available interrogators were from the child protection squad – a twist which was not lost on anyone, given the focus of the protest concerned Jeffrey Epstein. The activists just answered all queries with: “I have no comment.” A few minutes into the interview, police presented a photo: “‘Mr Knowles, did you remove the drawer from this bedside table?’ ‘No comment.’ ‘Sir, do you know anyone who may have had reason to remove the drawer?’ ‘No comment.’ I anticipated the next move: an image 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, every charge were dropped.
