The Aftermath: The Night Led By Donkeys Beamed Pictures Featuring Trump and Epstein onto Windsor Castle
When the announcement was made for the former president's second state visit, including a royal dinner at Windsor on September 17th, 2025, the activist collective known as Led By Donkeys was determined to ensure it did not go without a statement. The act of rolling out the red carpet was viewed as especially servile. Their subsequent art-activist event unfolded with precision.
A Provocative Film
The group produced a short documentary detailing the connections with notorious figure Jeffrey Epstein. Its ending stated: “The president of the United States is alleged to have been a longstanding associate of America’s most notorious child sex trafficker. He’s alleged to be mentioned, numerous times, in documents related to the criminal probe into that individual … Now that president, Donald Trump, is a guest within Windsor Castle.” (For his part, Trump maintains he ended his friendship with Epstein long prior to Epstein’s first arrest and repeatedly refuted any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.)
Preparations and Execution
The group had secured rooms in the adjacent Harte and Garter hotel, which boast “castle view” and, more crucially, superior castle views, according to a co-founder, Ben Stewart. They utilized a high-lumen projector. For audio, Stewart placed a wireless speaker, concealed within a box of cereal, on top of a public rubbish bin outside.
The world’s media was assembled, their gaze fixed at the castle, becoming bored as Trump was delayed. The film, however, gained traction everywhere. “Although photographs of Epstein and Trump went viral online,” Stewart notes, “I’m not sure that convinces people of anything – it simply makes Trump uncomfortable. Our documentary gives people a social object to share, saying: ‘This is something really serious to examine here.’ We took an act of activist journalism about Trump and Epstein, and it was viewed 20m times.”
The Moment of Projection
The film began with the recognizable Windsor Castle logo. “Projecting onto the castle's round tower requires some technical calibration,” Stewart states. “First appeared 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 goes through the officers around me, and the police all pile into the hotel.”
A History of Activism
This was not their inaugural action; it wasn’t even their first action against Trump. In 2018, while working for Greenpeace, Stewart piloted a motorized paraglider over the hotel 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
However, the activists were not especially worried about arrest. “All my anxiety is channelled into wanting the action to succeed,” says Oliver Knowles, another co-founder. “By the time the police make the intervention, the die is cast.” Officers was rapid, arriving in the lobby in under three minutes, “really pumped up”, he remembers. “They were in jumpsuits and caps. They’d finally found the culprits. They charged up the stairs; prepared; tasked to protect the president. Fortunately, no firearms. But they were very adrenalised when they entered the room. I told them: ‘We should keep this calm.’”
Stalling multiple police officers is a long time. It helped that officers didn’t know under what law to make arrests. When they finally entered the room, “one officer started reading a section of the Town and Country Planning Act, before another told him to stop as it was incorrect.” Knowles and three other activists were then arrested for malicious communications, a law related to harassment. “The law is precise: its purpose is to deal with a really concerning 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 remarks pointedly. As his colleagues were arrested, he slipped away, shortly thereafter boarded 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 re-arrested them, this time for causing a public nuisance, having decided more likely to succeed. When they came to be questioned, the sole available interrogators belonged to the child protection unit – a twist that was palpable, given the focus of the protest involved alleged sex offender. Knowles and his associates responded to every question with: “I have no comment.” A few minutes into the interview, police presented a photograph: “‘Mr Knowles, did you remove the drawer from this nightstand?’ ‘No comment.’ ‘Sir, do you know anyone who may have had cause to take the drawer?’ ‘No comment.’ I anticipated the next move: a picture of a large projector, ratchet-strapped to several drawers. Then, the detectives struggled to maintain their composure.”
The Outcome
A little more than one month later, every charge was dismissed.
