The inflatable depicting Donald Trump as a nappy-wearing baby, which became a symbol of protest during his 2018 UK visit, has been reinflated by the Museum of London. The 6-metre-high blimp underwent a test inflation this week to assess its condition ahead of being displayed in the museum's protest collection.
First flown above a march in Parliament Square in July 2018, the blimp was created to lampoon the then US president during his working visit to London. Around 75,000 people protested against Trump, with some calling for his impeachment. The blimp reappeared during his state visit the following year.
Designed by Matt Bonner and constructed by Imagine Inflatables of Leicester, the blimp was gifted to the museum in January 2021. Engineers are now testing its structural integrity and determining how long it holds air, before making any necessary repairs.
“It is always a challenge to preserve objects that are meant to be short-lived like the Trump blimp,” a Museum of London spokesperson said. “It was made to be flown over Parliament Square during the then president Trump’s visit … a quick, flexible and visible icon, as opposed to the permanent statues in Parliament Square.”
The museum has collaborated with scientists from University College London and the University of Ljubljana to analyse the PVC material, which is soft and flexible like a giant beach ball. The blimp will join artefacts from the suffrage movement, CND marches, and anti-Iraq war protests in the museum's protest collection, and is expected to go on display at the museum's new West Smithfield home, opening in 2026.
