The Unfolding Events: The Evening The Activist Group Beamed Pictures Featuring Trump and Epstein on to Windsor Castle

When the announcement was made for Donald Trump’s upcoming official trip, complete with a royal dinner at Windsor on 17 September 2025, the activist collective Led By Donkeys was determined to ensure it did not go without a statement. The gesture of offering a lavish welcome was viewed as especially servile. Their subsequent art-activist event proceeded with precision.

A Provocative Film

Activists created a nine-minute film exploring Donald Trump’s relationship with notorious figure Jeffrey Epstein. Its ending stated: “The president of the United States is alleged to have been a long-time close friend of America’s most notorious sex offender. He’s alleged to be mentioned, numerous times, in the files related to the criminal probe into Epstein … And now that very man, Donald Trump, is a guest in Windsor Castle.” (For his part, Trump has stated he ended his friendship with Epstein years before Epstein’s first arrest and repeatedly refuted all allegations concerning Epstein.)

Preparations and Execution

The activists had secured rooms in the adjacent Harte and Garter hotel, which boast “castle view” and, even more helpfully, superior castle views, according to group founder, Ben Stewart. Their equipment included a powerful projector. For audio, Stewart positioned a wireless speaker, hidden within a box of cereal, atop a public rubbish bin outside.

The world’s media had gathered, staring at the castle, growing restless as Trump was delayed. The film, however, spread rapidly globally. “Although the still pictures of Epstein and Trump spread like wildfire online,” Stewart says, “I doubt that convinces people of anything – it simply makes Trump uncomfortable. Our documentary provides viewers something tangible to share, saying: ‘There’s something really serious to examine here.’ We took an act of activist journalism about Trump and Epstein, and it was viewed 20m times.”

The Reveal

The film began with the recognizable Windsor Castle logo. “It requires the castle's round tower requires some technical calibration,” Stewart explains. “So there’s this royal crest. Officers are thinking: ‘Ah, that’s nice – the royal family,’ and suddenly a massive image of Jeffrey Epstein appears. A wave of shock goes through the officers around me, and they all pile into the hotel.”

A History of Activism

It wasn't the group’s first rodeo; it wasn’t even their first action targeting Trump. Back in 2018, while working for Greenpeace, Stewart piloted a paraglider near the hotel where the then-president was staying in Scotland. A year later, officers warned him that if he tried again, his safety wasn't assured.

Confrontation with Police

However, the group's creators weren't especially worried about detainment. “My nervous energy is channelled into wanting the action to succeed,” says Oliver Knowles, a fellow founder. “Once the police make the intervention, the message is already out.” The police response was rapid, arriving in the lobby in under three minutes, “really pumped up”, Knowles recalls. “They were in tactical gear and caps. They had located some protesters. They charged up the stairs; prepared; they were on a mission to protect the president. Thankfully, no guns. But they were very adrenalised upon entering the room. I had to say: ‘Let’s keep this calm.’”

Stalling multiple police officers is a long time. It helped that they were unsure under what law to charge anyone. Upon finally entering the room, “a policeman started reading a section of the Town and Country Planning Act, which another officer asked him to stop because it wasn’t right.” Knowles and three additional activists were then arrested for malicious communications, a stalking law. “The law is precise: it’s designed 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 contrary to the intent of the legislation,” Stewart says archly. As his colleagues were arrested, he melted into the crowd, shortly thereafter boarded a train out of Windsor, contacting legal counsel.

A Second Arrest and Questioning

Some time that night, as the detainees sat in cells at Maidenhead police station, police re-entered and arrested them again, this time for public nuisance, deeming it a stronger charge. When they came to be questioned, the sole available interrogators were from the child protection unit – an irony which was palpable, given the subject matter of the protest concerned Jeffrey Epstein. Knowles and his associates just answered all queries with: “No comment.” Shortly after starting the interview, the officers slid over 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 anticipated the next move: an image of a large projector, ratchet-strapped to several drawers. At that point, the officers were finding it hard to keep a straight face.”

The Outcome

Just over a month later, every charge was dismissed.