Revealed: Donald Trump to avoid protests during UK visit

Donald Trump will be kept out of the firing line of protesters during his highly-anticipated trip to the UK next week.

The US president will avoid London for the majority of his stay, with a "Stop Trump" march featuring a giant balloon depicting Mr Trump as a nappy-clad orange baby set to be flown near the Houses of Parliament next Friday - the day after he arrives in the UK.

Shortly after confirmation that he would be visiting the UK, six conservative groups who back the president wrote a letter urging him to skip London for fear of "major protests, crime and disorder".

They suggested he instead visit his "ancestral home" of Scotland (his mother was born of the Isle of Lewis), and it has now been revealed by Downing Street that he will do just that.

However, the US ambassador to the UK Woody Johnson says there is no deliberate plan to keep Mr Trump away from central London protests.

Mr Trump - who will arrive with wife Melania on Thursday after a NATO summit - will spend a relaxing weekend there to bring the trip to a close.

On the first day of the visit, the prime minister will host the couple at Blenheim Palace, birthplace of Winston Churchill.

With plenty of pomp and ceremony, their evening will get underway with a military welcome by the bands of the Scots, Irish and Welsh guards.

They will play three tunes - the Liberty Fanfare, Amazing Grace and the National Emblem.

A Downing Street spokesperson said around 100 business sector guests will attend, "celebrating the business links between the UK and US".

They will come from a range of sectors, including financial services, the travel industry, pharmaceuticals and defence.

It is thought some government ministers will also attend.

Throughout the formal dinner, guests will be entertained by the Countess of Wessex's orchestra, which will perform classic British and American hits.

The evening will end with the Royal Regiment of Scotland "piping out" the president, who will then spend the night at the official residence of the American ambassador - Winfield House in Regent's Park, central London.

Continuing the military theme on Friday, the president and Theresa May will watch a demonstration at a defence site to showcase the UK's "cutting edge military capabilities and integrated UK-US military training".

After that comes a working lunch at Chequers - the prime minister's official country residence currently being used for a crucial round of Brexit discussions - for "substantive bilateral talks" covering a "range of foreign policy issues".

The president and the first lady will then get the opportunity to meet the Queen at Windsor Castle, before heading up to Scotland for the weekend - where a spot of golf is expected to be on the agenda.

Mr Trump owns Trump International Golf Links, a course in Balmedie, near Aberdeen.

The prime minister is not expected to travel to Scotland during Mr Trump's visit, which comes at a critical point for the government, with Brexit fast approaching and ambitions to strike a trade deal with the US.

As the UK prepares to leave the EU, insiders say this visit hopes to "deepen our special relationship" with Washington.

Ambassador Johnson said that the special relationship between the two nations is as strong now as it has ever been and that the US is "not advocating either hard or soft Brexit".

But the trip has been criticised by some, and mass protests are planned for each stage of the visit.

The Prime Minister's spokesperson said: "We are a free and open democracy and we believe in the right to protest. I think the majority of the British people understand the importance of our alliance."