The Aftermath: The Night Led By Donkeys Beamed Images of Trump and Epstein on to Windsor Castle
When the announcement was made for Donald Trump’s upcoming official trip, including a Windsor Castle banquet on 17 September 2025, the activist collective known as Led By Donkeys was determined not to let it pass unprotested. The gesture of rolling out the red carpet seemed particularly craven. Their next art-activist event proceeded like clockwork.
A Provocative Film
Activists created a short documentary exploring the connections with the late financier Jeffrey Epstein. It concluded: “The president of the United States was a longstanding associate of America’s most notorious sex offender. He’s alleged to be mentioned, numerous times, in documents related to the criminal probe into Epstein … Now that president, Donald Trump, is sleeping here within Windsor Castle.” (For his part, Trump has stated he ended his friendship with Epstein long prior to Epstein’s initial legal troubles and has consistently denied all allegations in relation to Epstein.)
Preparations and Execution
The activists had secured rooms in the adjacent Harte and Garter hotel, which boast “castle view” and, more crucially, “castle view superior”, according to group founder, Ben Stewart. They utilized a powerful projector. For audio, Stewart placed a wireless speaker, hidden inside a cereal box, 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 globally. “Although photographs of Epstein and Trump went viral online,” Stewart says, “I doubt that convinces people of anything – it just makes Trump uncomfortable. The film we made gives people a social object to share, implying: ‘This is something really serious to look at here.’ It was an act of activist journalism about Trump and Epstein, and it was viewed by millions.”
The Reveal
It started with the official Windsor Castle logo. “It requires a cylindrical building requires a little bit of mapping,” Stewart explains. “So there’s this royal crest. The police likely thought: ‘How pleasant – a royal tribute,’ and suddenly a massive image of Jeffrey Epstein materializes. This electric jolt passed through the police in fluorescent jackets around me, and they all pile into the hotel.”
Not Their First Protest
This was not the group’s first rodeo; nor was it their first effort against Trump. In 2018, while working for Greenpeace, Stewart piloted a motorized paraglider near the resort where the then-president was staying during a visit to Turnberry. A year later, police visited him that if he tried again, they couldn’t guarantee.
The Arrests
However, the activists weren't overly concerned about arrest. “My nervous energy is channelled into wanting the action to succeed,” notes Oliver Knowles, another co-founder. “By the time the police arrive, the die is cast.” The police response was swift, reaching the hotel within three minutes, “really pumped up”, he remembers. “They were in tactical gear and baseball caps. They had located the culprits. They came roaring up the stairs; prepared; they were on a mission to safeguard the guest. Fortunately, no firearms. But they were extremely tense when they entered the room. I told them: ‘Let’s keep this calm.’”
Delaying a large number of police officers for six minutes. It helped that officers were unsure under what law to charge anyone. When they finally entered the room, “one officer began reciting a clause of the Town and Country Planning Act, before another asked him to stop as it was incorrect.” Knowles and three additional activists were subsequently detained for malicious communications, a law related to harassment. “The law is precise: it’s designed to address a really concerning offence. To throw it at an act of journalism, displayed on a wall, to protect the reputation of the president, appeared against the spirit of the legislation,” Stewart remarks pointedly. As his colleagues were arrested, he slipped away, shortly thereafter boarded a train out of Windsor, contacting legal counsel.
A Second Arrest and Questioning
Some time that night, as the detainees were in the cells at Maidenhead police station, officers came in and arrested them again, this time for public nuisance, deeming it more likely to succeed. When they came to be questioned, the sole available interrogators were from the child protection squad – an irony that was not lost on anyone, given the subject matter of the protest involved alleged sex offender. Knowles and his associates just answered all queries with: “No comment.” A few minutes into the interview, the officers slid over a photograph: “‘Mr Knowles, did you remove the drawer from this bedside table?’ ‘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: an image of a large projector, ratchet-strapped to four drawers. Then, the detectives struggled to maintain their composure.”
The Final Result
Just over one month later, every charge were dropped.
