A record 21,000 complaints have been received by the Press Complaints Commission (PCC) about a Daily Mail article that criticised the "dangerous lifestyle" of Stephen Gately after the Boyzone’s singer’s death.

The article, written by Jan Moir and originally headlined “Why there was nothing ’natural’ about Stephen Gately’s death”, rapidly provoked widespread commentary on the internet, and a campaign to complain about its contents to the PCC, which regulates newspapers.

The level of complaints reach a level only previously seen in television controversies such as the Shilpa Shetty race row on Celebrity Big Brother or the reaction to prank calls made by Jonathan Ross and Russell Brand on the BBC.

The PCC said that the figure represents “by far the highest number of complaints ever received about a single article in the history of the Commission”.

However, despite the volume of complaints, the PCC said that it was yet to begin an inquiry. The regulator does not normally accept “third party” complaints from unhappy readers, preferring to deal directly with any concerns raised by the subjects of a news article.

Moir wrote that the death of the 33-year-old gay pop star after a night out in Majorca this month “strikes another blow to the happy-ever-after myth of civil partnerships”. The article concluded: “Once again, under the carapace of glittering, hedonistic celebrity, the ooze of a very different and more dangerous lifestyle has seeped out for all to see”.

The PCC said that it was engaging with Gately’s family, saying “it has pro-actively been in touch with representatives of Boyzone — who are in contact with Stephen Gately’s family” since shortly after his sudden death last week.

If there is no complaint from the family, the PCC said that it would “any case write to the Daily Mail for its response to the more general complaints from the public”. The regulator said that it would make public its findings but it will not write back to every complainant individually.

There was no immediate response from the newspaper over the number of complaints but on Friday a spokesman for the newspaper said: “In the interest of free speech Mail Online is carrying comments both for and against her column but regrets the heavy-handed tactics by the campaign which is clearly being fanned by many people who haven’t even read Jan’s views.”

Defending her piece last week, Moir complained of an “orchestrated internet campaign” and said: “However, the point of my column — which, I wonder how many of the people complaining have fully read — was to suggest that, in my honest opinion, his death raises many unanswered questions”.

The publisher decided to withdraw adverts alongside the online version of the article on Friday.

Complaints to Ofcom about the Shilpa Shetty episode numbered 44,500 in January 2007, while the BBC received 42,000 complaints about the Russell Brand show in October of last year.

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