🔗 Share this article 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, complete with a Windsor Castle banquet on 17 September 2025, the activist collective Led By Donkeys felt compelled to ensure it did not go unprotested. The act of offering a lavish welcome was viewed as particularly craven. Their subsequent creative protest unfolded like clockwork. A Deliberate Message The group produced a short documentary detailing the connections with notorious figure Jeffrey Epstein. Its ending stated: “The president of the United States was a longstanding associate of the nation's most infamous sex offender. His name is said to be referenced, repeatedly, in the files related to the investigation into Epstein … And now that president, Donald Trump, is a guest in Windsor Castle.” (For his part, Trump maintains he fell out with Epstein years before Epstein’s first arrest and repeatedly refuted any wrongdoing concerning Epstein.) Preparations and Execution The activists had booked rooms in the nearby Harte and Garter hotel, which boast “castle view” and, more crucially, “castle view superior”, according to a co-founder, Ben Stewart. They utilized a powerful 32,000-lumen projector. To broadcast sound, Stewart positioned a Bluetooth speaker, hidden within a box of cereal, on top of a public rubbish bin outside. International press had gathered, their gaze fixed at the castle, growing restless as Trump was delayed. Their film, spread rapidly globally. “Although photographs of Epstein and Trump spread like wildfire online,” Stewart says, “I’m not sure that persuades anyone of anything – it simply makes Trump uneasy. The film we made gives people a social object to share, saying: ‘There’s something significant to look at here.’ It was an act of activist journalism about Trump and Epstein, and it was seen by millions.” The Moment of Projection It started with the recognizable Windsor Castle logo. “It requires a cylindrical building requires some technical calibration,” Stewart states. “First appeared this royal crest. Officers are thinking: ‘Ah, that’s nice – a royal tribute,’ and then abruptly a great big picture of Jeffrey Epstein materializes. A wave of shock goes through the officers nearby, and they raced into the hotel.” Not Their First Protest This was not the group’s first rodeo; it wasn’t even their first effort against Trump. Back in 2018, while working for Greenpeace, Stewart piloted a motorized paraglider over the hotel where the president was staying in Scotland. A year later, officers warned him that any repeat, they couldn’t guarantee. The Arrests But, the group's creators were not overly concerned about detainment. “My nervous energy goes into wanting the protest works,” says Oliver Knowles, a fellow founder. “By the time the police arrive, the message is already out.” Officers was swift, reaching the hotel in under three minutes, highly agitated, Knowles recalls. “They were in tactical gear and baseball caps. They’d finally found the culprits. They charged up the stairs; prepared; tasked to safeguard the guest. Fortunately, no firearms. But they were very adrenalised upon entering the room. I had to say: ‘We should keep this calm.’” Stalling a large number of police officers for six minutes. The fact that officers were unsure which law to charge anyone. When they finally entered the room, “one officer began reciting a section of the Town and Country Planning Act, which another officer asked him to stop as it was incorrect.” Knowles and three other 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, displayed on a wall, to protect the reputation of the president, seemed against the spirit of the legislation,” Stewart remarks pointedly. As his colleagues were arrested, he slipped away, then soon after was on a train out of Windsor, contacting legal counsel. An Ironic Interrogation Some time in the middle of the night, as the detainees sat in cells at Maidenhead police station, police re-entered and re-arrested them, this time for public nuisance, having decided more likely to succeed. When they came to be questioned, the only officers available were from the child protection unit – an irony which was palpable, given the subject matter of the protest involved alleged sex offender. Knowles and his associates just answered every question with: “No comment.” Shortly after starting the interview, the officers slid over a photo: “‘Mr Knowles, did you take the drawer from this nightstand?’ ‘No comment.’ ‘Mr Knowles, do you know anyone who may have had cause to take the drawer?’ ‘No comment.’ I knew the next move: an image of a giant projector, ratchet-strapped to several drawers. Then, the detectives were finding it hard to maintain their composure.” The Outcome Just over a month later, every charge were dropped.
When plans were revealed for Donald Trump’s upcoming official trip, complete with a Windsor Castle banquet on 17 September 2025, the activist collective Led By Donkeys felt compelled to ensure it did not go unprotested. The act of offering a lavish welcome was viewed as particularly craven. Their subsequent creative protest unfolded like clockwork. A Deliberate Message The group produced a short documentary detailing the connections with notorious figure Jeffrey Epstein. Its ending stated: “The president of the United States was a longstanding associate of the nation's most infamous sex offender. His name is said to be referenced, repeatedly, in the files related to the investigation into Epstein … And now that president, Donald Trump, is a guest in Windsor Castle.” (For his part, Trump maintains he fell out with Epstein years before Epstein’s first arrest and repeatedly refuted any wrongdoing concerning Epstein.) Preparations and Execution The activists had booked rooms in the nearby Harte and Garter hotel, which boast “castle view” and, more crucially, “castle view superior”, according to a co-founder, Ben Stewart. They utilized a powerful 32,000-lumen projector. To broadcast sound, Stewart positioned a Bluetooth speaker, hidden within a box of cereal, on top of a public rubbish bin outside. International press had gathered, their gaze fixed at the castle, growing restless as Trump was delayed. Their film, spread rapidly globally. “Although photographs of Epstein and Trump spread like wildfire online,” Stewart says, “I’m not sure that persuades anyone of anything – it simply makes Trump uneasy. The film we made gives people a social object to share, saying: ‘There’s something significant to look at here.’ It was an act of activist journalism about Trump and Epstein, and it was seen by millions.” The Moment of Projection It started with the recognizable Windsor Castle logo. “It requires a cylindrical building requires some technical calibration,” Stewart states. “First appeared this royal crest. Officers are thinking: ‘Ah, that’s nice – a royal tribute,’ and then abruptly a great big picture of Jeffrey Epstein materializes. A wave of shock goes through the officers nearby, and they raced into the hotel.” Not Their First Protest This was not the group’s first rodeo; it wasn’t even their first effort against Trump. Back in 2018, while working for Greenpeace, Stewart piloted a motorized paraglider over the hotel where the president was staying in Scotland. A year later, officers warned him that any repeat, they couldn’t guarantee. The Arrests But, the group's creators were not overly concerned about detainment. “My nervous energy goes into wanting the protest works,” says Oliver Knowles, a fellow founder. “By the time the police arrive, the message is already out.” Officers was swift, reaching the hotel in under three minutes, highly agitated, Knowles recalls. “They were in tactical gear and baseball caps. They’d finally found the culprits. They charged up the stairs; prepared; tasked to safeguard the guest. Fortunately, no firearms. But they were very adrenalised upon entering the room. I had to say: ‘We should keep this calm.’” Stalling a large number of police officers for six minutes. The fact that officers were unsure which law to charge anyone. When they finally entered the room, “one officer began reciting a section of the Town and Country Planning Act, which another officer asked him to stop as it was incorrect.” Knowles and three other 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, displayed on a wall, to protect the reputation of the president, seemed against the spirit of the legislation,” Stewart remarks pointedly. As his colleagues were arrested, he slipped away, then soon after was on a train out of Windsor, contacting legal counsel. An Ironic Interrogation Some time in the middle of the night, as the detainees sat in cells at Maidenhead police station, police re-entered and re-arrested them, this time for public nuisance, having decided more likely to succeed. When they came to be questioned, the only officers available were from the child protection unit – an irony which was palpable, given the subject matter of the protest involved alleged sex offender. Knowles and his associates just answered every question with: “No comment.” Shortly after starting the interview, the officers slid over a photo: “‘Mr Knowles, did you take the drawer from this nightstand?’ ‘No comment.’ ‘Mr Knowles, do you know anyone who may have had cause to take the drawer?’ ‘No comment.’ I knew the next move: an image of a giant projector, ratchet-strapped to several drawers. Then, the detectives were finding it hard to maintain their composure.” The Outcome Just over a month later, every charge were dropped.