I work as a lecturer at the Department of Area and Cultural Studies, University of Helsinki, teaching European cultural studies. I am a cultural historian by training, and even though my teaching centers on contemporary topics, my research has focused on early modern England. I wrote my PhD on early modern fools (Fellows of Infinite Jest, 1999) and have since published books (in Finnish) on bodily beauty (Silmän ilot, 2005), cultural history and historical theory (Historian kirjoittamisesta, 2005, together with Marjo Kaartinen), and humour and gender in early modern jest-books (Kiusan henki, 2013). I have also written several articles in English on related topics, some of which can be accessed at my website.