Donald Trump baby blimp re-inflated by Museum of London

The Donald Trump ‘baby blimp’ has been re-inflated as part of conservation work by the Museum of London.

The inflatable baby blimp, which flew above a march in Parliament Square in London in July 2018, was given a test inflation this week.

It was first flown during Trump’s working visit to London to meet the then monarch Queen Elizabeth II and then prime minister Theresa May.

Around 75,000 people took to the streets to protest against him, with some calling for him to be impeached.

The 6-metre-high work, designed by Matt Bonner and constructed by Imagine Inflatables of Leicester, was gifted to the museum in January 2021.

The balloon depicts Mr Trump as a baby wearing a nappy and holding a mobile phone.

Specialists have inflated it at a specialist firm in Chelmsford to check for any needed repairs.

The museum hopes to put it on display at its new home in West Smithfield, which opens in 2026.

“It is always a challenge to preserve objects that are meant to be short-lived like the Trump blimp,” a spokesperson from the Museum of London 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 made from the much more durable materials.

“We have worked together with scientists at University College London and the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, to analyse the composition of the plastic.

“The blimp is made from PVC material, it is soft and flexible and very thin, much like a giant beach ball.

“Plastics age and break down in sometimes unexpected ways, so this will help us establish how we can best preserve it in the long-term as part of our collection.”

The balloon will be displayed as part of the museum’s protest collection, along with objects related to the suffrage movement and banners from protests for more accessible public transport.

You can find out more about the blimp on the Museum of London’s official website here.