The Aftermath: The Evening The Activist Group Projected Pictures Featuring Trump and Epstein on to Windsor Castle

When plans were revealed for Donald Trump’s upcoming official trip, complete with a Windsor Castle banquet on September 17th, 2025, the protest group known as Led By Donkeys felt compelled to ensure it did not go without a statement. The gesture of offering a lavish welcome seemed particularly craven. Their subsequent art-activist event unfolded with precision.

A Deliberate Message

The group produced a short documentary detailing Donald Trump’s relationship with notorious figure Jeffrey Epstein. It concluded: “The president of the United States was a long-time close friend of the nation's most infamous child sex trafficker. His name is said to be referenced, numerous times, in the files from the criminal probe into Epstein … Now that president, Donald Trump, is sleeping here within Windsor Castle.” (In response, Trump has stated he ended his friendship with Epstein years before Epstein’s first arrest and has consistently denied all allegations in relation to Epstein.)

The Setup

The activists had booked rooms in the adjacent Harte and Garter hotel, rooms advertised with “castle view” and, more crucially, superior castle views, according to group founder, Ben Stewart. Their equipment included a powerful projector. To broadcast sound, Stewart positioned a wireless speaker, hidden inside a cereal box, on top of a garbage can outside.

International press was assembled, staring at the castle, growing restless as Trump was delayed. The film, however, spread rapidly globally. “While photographs of Epstein and Trump went viral online,” Stewart notes, “I’m not sure that convinces people of anything – it simply makes Trump uneasy. The film we made gives people a social object to share, implying: ‘This is something significant to look at here.’ We took an act of activist journalism about Trump and Epstein, and it was seen by millions.”

The Moment of Projection

It started with the official Windsor Castle logo. “Projecting onto a cylindrical building needs some technical calibration,” Stewart states. “So there’s this royal crest. The police likely thought: ‘Ah, that’s nice – a royal tribute,’ and then abruptly a great big picture of Jeffrey Epstein appears. This electric jolt passed through the police in fluorescent jackets 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 effort against Trump. Back in 2018, during his time with Greenpeace, Stewart had flown a motorized paraglider near the resort where the president was staying in Scotland. The following year, police visited him that any repeat, his safety wasn't assured.

Confrontation with Police

However, the group's creators were not especially worried about detainment. “All my anxiety goes into ensuring the protest works,” notes Oliver Knowles, another co-founder. “By the time the police make the intervention, the message is already out.” Officers was rapid, reaching the hotel in under three minutes, “really pumped up”, Knowles recalls. “Wearing tactical gear and baseball caps. They’d finally found some protesters. They came roaring up the stairs; prepared; tasked to protect the president. Thankfully, no firearms. But they were extremely tense upon entering the room. I had to say: ‘Let’s keep this calm.’”

Delaying a large number of 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 started reading a clause of the Town and Country Planning Act, before another asked 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. To throw it at an act of journalism, displayed on a wall, in defense of the reputation of the president, appeared against the spirit of the legislation,” Stewart says archly. As his colleagues were arrested, he slipped away, shortly thereafter was on a train leaving Windsor, contacting legal counsel.

A Second Arrest and Questioning

Some time that night, while the activists sat in cells at Maidenhead police station, police re-entered and re-arrested them, now for public nuisance, having decided more likely to succeed. During interrogation, the sole available interrogators belonged to the child protection squad – a twist that was not lost on anyone, given the focus of the protest concerned Jeffrey Epstein. Knowles and his associates just answered every question with: “No comment.” A few minutes into the interview, the officers slid over a photo: “They asked, did you take the drawer from this nightstand?’ ‘No comment.’ ‘Mr Knowles, do you know anybody else who may have had reason to remove the drawer?’ ‘No comment.’ I knew what was coming: a picture of a giant projector, secured to four drawers. Then, the detectives struggled to maintain their composure.”

The Outcome

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