Trump begins second U.K. state visit under shadow of Epstein scandal

President Trump and the first lady will be flown Wednesday by helicopter roughly 20 miles from central London, where they spent the first night of their visit at the U.S. ambassador's official residence, Winfield House, to Windsor Castle, in time for lunch. After being greeted by the future king, Prince William, and his wife Catherine, the Prince and Princess of Wales, they will join King Charles III and Queen Camilla for lunch.

Later in the day Mr. Trump will lay a wreath at the crypt of the late Queen Elizabeth II, who died in Sept. 2022, before attending a musical performance and honorary military flyover at Windsor.

The night will be capped by a formal state banquet, hosted by the monarch.

The protest group Led By Donkeys projected an enormous video onto the walls of Windsor Castle Tuesday night, hours before President Trump was due to arrive at the royal residence, depicting what it called "the story of Trump and Epstein." A video shared by the group on social media included the narration, carried over loudspeakers in Windsor, detailing Mr. Trump's previous ties to the late financier and convicted sex offender.

The Thames Valley Police confirmed in a statement that four people were arrested in connection with the demonstration.

An image of Jeffrey Epstein and President Trump is projected by political campaign group Led By Donkeys onto Windsor Castle, ahead of Mr. Trump's second state visit to the U.K., Sept. 16, 2025, in Windsor, England. Mark Kerrison/In Pictures/Getty

"We take any unauthorized activity around Windsor Castle extremely seriously," the force said in a statement. "Our officers responded swiftly to stop the projection and four people have been arrested. We are conducting a thorough investigation with our partners into the circumstances surrounding this incident and will provide further updates when we are in a position to do so."

President Trump landed at London's Stansted Airport on Tuesday evening for his second state visit to the U.K. The President made his way to the official central London residence of the U.S. Ambassador to the U.K., called Winfield House, where he was asked by journalists how it felt to be back.

"I love it. I love Turnberry, I love Aberdeen, I love a lot of things here… they warm my heart, I want to tell you. They're very special," Mr. Trump said.

Mr. Trump has golf courses near Turnberry and Aberdeen in Scotland, which is part of the United Kingdom.

President Trump and first lady Melania Trump disembark from Air Force One after landing at Stansted Airport, near London, England, Sept. 16, 2025, for a two-day state visit to the U.K. ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP/Getty

When asked if he had a message for King Charles III, Mr. Trump said: "We're going to see him tomorrow, and he's been a friend of mine for a long time. And everybody respects him and they love him."

Tucker Reals is CBSNews.com's foreign editor, based in the CBS News London bureau. He has worked for CBS News since 2006, prior to which he worked for The Associated Press in Washington, D.C., and London.