60 Years ago.....
.....The aircraft she returned in was an Argonaut, so I imagine the aircraft she left in was this same type as operated by BOAC 60 years ago. BOAC didn't operate the DC7 until it came along somewhat later.
The Canadian built Argonaut appeared externally much like the DC4, but was powered by a late version of the Merlin engine, and most importantly had a pressurised cabin. I flew the type for a short while, and it had one or two features of DC6 era technology.
I don't know about the Queen's bit, but the pilots had nice big green leather seats, and large windows to look out of. Vertically and horizontally, it took a while to get anywhere, but it had a drift sight in the floor, if as with self, you weren't too hot with a sextant and heading into places like Africa. It rattled a bit, but not much worse than sitting in the row that's in-line with the fans on a 777. ( burnt a bit more oil though )
I'm not left with the impression that the wheels usually took a long time to come up. It's always possible that the Captain forgot to command the gear to be raised for a minute or two. Then as now it's usually the most senior management plus other senior backups in charge on kudos delivering occasions, and they tend not to leave the office as often as is ideal. To be fair though, gassed up and with a high payload on a really hot day, they might have delayed initiating the action if the extra drag caused by opening the gear doors was thought to be significant.