Did UK play Darth Vader's 'Imperial March' theme to welcome Trump?

During U.S. President Donald Trump's September 2025 trip to the United Kingdom, a claim spread online that Windsor Castle's ceremonial welcome for him included Darth Vader's instrumental theme from the "Star Wars" movie franchise, officially known as "The Imperial March." 

The rumor spread on X, Threads and Facebook; many posts included a video of Trump appearing to salute to music associated with one of the most iconic villains in film history. 

However, Trump's real ceremonial welcome to the United Kingdom did not include any "Star Wars" music. Someone appeared to have dubbed over a legitimate video of Trump's state visit with Darth Vader's theme, although we could not determine who. As such, we have rated this video fake, meaning someone misleadingly edited it, either to misrepresent reality or as a joke that social media users misinterpreted as true.

Text in the bottom left-hand corner of the video circulating said "skynews.com," a reference to a British television news channel. A search for the original Sky News video revealed that the King's Guard — British soldiers who guard royal landmarks —actually played "The Star-Spangled Banner," the U.S. national anthem.

Sky News also posted the full ceremonial welcome on YouTube, and at no point in the video does Trump salute to "Star Wars" music (see 24:04 for the footage used in the fabricated clip): 

King Charles III and Queen Camilla welcomed Trump to the United Kingdom on Sept. 16. During Trump's state visit, he met with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to talk about various domestic and foreign policy issues, including the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, before heading back to the U.S. on Sept. 18.