But Ms Herron said she would not agree to projecting text onto the sails. "We have a policy that protects our world heritage status," she told Jones. "So they're going to damage it are they?" Jones said. "We own the Opera House. Do you get that message? You don't. You manage it." Jones said that, if she did not change her position, "if I were Gladys Berejiklian, I would pick up the phone and sack you today". Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video

Ms Herron replied: "We have said yes to the Peter V'landys request to put the jockeys' colours on the sails. We have no problem with that. "What we won't do is put text or videos of horse running or horses' numbers or names or the Everest logo on the Opera House," she said. Video obtained by Fairfax Media of the official Racing NSW submission to the Opera House shows it wants large lists of horse names projected on the sails along with The Everest logo, video footage of horse racing and jockeys' colours. In some shots in the 50-second concept video, the giant Everest logo does not fit on the sails properly, and it ends with a poorly etched horse and jockey racing across the sails. The Opera House lit up for Vivid Festival in 2017 Credit:Cole Bennetts

When Jones asked why Ms Herron would not project the text and logo on the Opera House, she replied: "It's not a billboard." Jones replied: "Who said? You. Who the hell do you think … who do you think you are?" Mr V'landys also phoned in to the interview, and agreed with Jones that merely lighting up the Opera House sails with jockeys' colours would mean "nothing". "You can't do a barrier draw without putting the horses' name and the number," Mr V'landys said. "That's the whole idea of the promotion ... to beam that around the world." Mr V'landys said Racing NSW had agreed not to project the Everest logo onto the Opera House. "We met those demands."

But Racing NSW wants to project an image of the Everest cup onto the sails. "Does the trophy say Everest Cup on it?" Ms Herron asked. "It says Everest," Mr V'landys replied. Sydney Opera House chief executive Louise Herron. Credit:Louise Kennerley Mr V'landys also asked Ms Herron about an occasion in which rugby union branding was projected on to the Opera House sails.

"We were directed to do that," Ms Herron said. "So why is racing being discriminated against?" Mr V'landys asked. John Rourke, an architect who worked on the Opera House in the late 1960s and early 1970s, told the Herald he applauded Ms Herron's stance. "Using the Opera House for what I think are crass commercial elements is wrong," he said. "While I've got nothing against horse racing, I don't believe it does anything to enhance either the building or the cultural [values] that it represents."

Mr Rourke, who is the president of opusSOH - a group of architects, designers and consultants who worked on the building - said he did not think any major sporting event should be promoted on the Opera House sails. "I think once you get into that - promoting commercial events - it’s a slippery slope," he said. An Opera House policy on illuminating sails, published in 2012, said it aimed to manage requests for use of the sails, while protecting them from "exploitation". The policy says approval for lighting the sails must not be "detrimental to the heritage values of the building", and is at the discretion of the chief executive. Logos and corporate identities are not to be projected, the policy says. The Opera House has, however, been used for commercial and sporting purposes. For instance, in 2013, photographs from the public were projected onto the sails as part of a deal with Samsung, while the sails were also lit up for a victory in the Ashes cricket series.

Jones, meanwhile, said Ms Herron should "put her resignation on the table today". "You are completely out of your depth," he said to Ms Herron. "I'm telling you that I will be speaking to Gladys Berejiklian in about five, three minutes and if you can't come to the party, Louise, you should lose your job." The Herald has requested comment from Ms Berejiklian about the issue. Labor leader Luke Foley told ABC Radio that the Opera House should be used to promote Sydney.