diff --git a/mwparserfromhell/parser/tokenizer.py b/mwparserfromhell/parser/tokenizer.py
index c404ebb..b70e932 100644
--- a/mwparserfromhell/parser/tokenizer.py
+++ b/mwparserfromhell/parser/tokenizer.py
@@ -1029,8 +1029,6 @@ class Tokenizer(object):
             elif break_on_table_end and this == "|" and next == "}":
                 if data.context & (data.CX_ATTR_NAME | data.CX_ATTR_VALUE):
                     self._push_tag_buffer(data)
-                if this.isspace():
-                    data.padding_buffer["first"] += this
                 return (self._pop(), data.padding_buffer["first"])
             else:
                 self._handle_tag_data(data, this)
@@ -1040,13 +1038,17 @@ class Tokenizer(object):
         """Handle the start of a table."""
         self._head += 2
         reset = self._head
-        style = None
+        style, table = None, None
         try:
             self._push(contexts.TABLE_OPEN)
             (style, padding) = self._parse_as_table_style("\n", break_on_table_end=True)
-            # Have to do this in the case of inline tables
-            self._head += 1 if "\n" in padding else 0
-            table = self._parse(contexts.TABLE_OPEN)
+            # continue to parse if it is NOT an inline table
+            if "\n" in padding:
+                self._head += 1
+                table = self._parse(contexts.TABLE_OPEN)
+            else:
+                # close tag
+                self._head += 2
         except BadRoute:
             # offset displacement done by _parse()
             self._head = reset - 1
@@ -1057,7 +1059,8 @@ class Tokenizer(object):
             if style:
                 self._emit_all(style)
             self._emit(tokens.TagCloseOpen(padding=padding))
-            self._emit_all(table)
+            if table:
+                self._emit_all(table)
             self._emit(tokens.TagOpenClose(wiki_markup="|}"))
             self._emit_text("table")
             self._emit(tokens.TagCloseClose())
@@ -1293,11 +1296,7 @@ class Tokenizer(object):
                 else:
                     self._emit_text("{|")
             elif self._context & contexts.TABLE_OPEN:
-                if this == "|" and next == "}":
-                    if self._context & contexts.TABLE_CELL_OPEN:
-                        return self._handle_table_cell_end()
-                    return self._handle_table_end()
-                elif this == "|" and next == "|" and self._context & contexts.TABLE_TD_LINE:
+                if this == "|" and next == "|" and self._context & contexts.TABLE_TD_LINE:
                     if self._context & contexts.TABLE_CELL_OPEN:
                         return self._handle_table_cell_end()
                     self._handle_table_cell("||", "td", contexts.TABLE_TD_LINE)
@@ -1317,7 +1316,11 @@ class Tokenizer(object):
                     self._emit_text(this)
                 elif (self._read(-1) in ("\n", self.START) or
                     (self._read(-2) in ("\n", self.START) and self._read(-1).isspace())):
-                    if this == "|" and next == "-":
+                    if this == "|" and next == "}":
+                        if self._context & contexts.TABLE_CELL_OPEN:
+                            return self._handle_table_cell_end()
+                        return self._handle_table_end()
+                    elif this == "|" and next == "-":
                         if self._context & contexts.TABLE_CELL_OPEN:
                             return self._handle_table_cell_end()
                         self._handle_table_row()
diff --git a/tests/tokenizer/tables.mwtest b/tests/tokenizer/tables.mwtest
index 3f3a68d..e63bd11 100644
--- a/tests/tokenizer/tables.mwtest
+++ b/tests/tokenizer/tables.mwtest
@@ -89,6 +89,13 @@ output: [TagOpenOpen(wiki_markup="{|"), Text(text="table"), TagCloseOpen(padding
 
 ---
 
+name:   characters_after_inline_table
+label:  Handle characters after an inline table close.
+input:  "{| |} tsta"
+output: [TagOpenOpen(wiki_markup="{|"), Text(text="table"), TagCloseOpen(padding=" "), TagOpenClose(wiki_markup="|}"), Text(text="table"), TagCloseClose(), Text(text=" tsta")]
+
+---
+
 name:   leading_characters_table
 label:  Don't parse as a table when leading characters are not newline or whitespace.
 input:  "foo \n  foo  \t {|\n|}"
@@ -124,6 +131,27 @@ output: [TagOpenOpen(wiki_markup="{|"), Text(text="table"), TagCloseOpen(padding
 
 ---
 
+name:   table_cell_fake_close
+label:  Looks like a table close but is not.
+input:  "{|\n | |} \n|}"
+output: [TagOpenOpen(wiki_markup="{|"), Text(text="table"), TagCloseOpen(padding="\n"), Text(text=" "), TagOpenOpen(wiki_markup="|"), Text(text="td"), TagCloseSelfclose(wiki_markup="|", padding=" "), Text(text="} \n"), TagOpenClose(wiki_markup="|}"), Text(text="table"), TagCloseClose()]
+
+---
+
+name:   table_cell_more_fake_close
+label:  Looks like a table close but is not.
+input:  "{|\n || |} \n|}"
+output: [TagOpenOpen(wiki_markup="{|"), Text(text="table"), TagCloseOpen(padding="\n"), Text(text=" "), TagOpenOpen(wiki_markup="|"), Text(text="td"), TagCloseSelfclose(wiki_markup="|", padding=""), Text(text=" |} \n"), TagOpenClose(wiki_markup="|}"), Text(text="table"), TagCloseClose()]
+
+---
+
+name:   table_cell_extra_close
+label:  Process second close as text.
+input:  "{| \n |} \n|}"
+output: [TagOpenOpen(wiki_markup="{|"), Text(text="table"), TagCloseOpen(padding=" \n"), Text(text=" "), TagOpenClose(wiki_markup="|}"), Text(text="table"), TagCloseClose(), Text(text=" \n|}")]
+
+---
+
 name:   table_header_simple
 label:  Simple header cell.
 input:  "{|\n ! foo \n|}"